Chapter 38
Chapter 38
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Chengdu Tang Clan (1)
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My world stopped at twenty-eight.
The slightly over sixty-seven years I spent in the Black Wall Cavern felt like time that never truly belonged to me.
No, that's not right. It can't be nonexistent. I clearly lived through it. I trained in martial arts.
So the time I spent doesn't just vanish into thin air. That's a fact.
But humans are social creatures.
That place, surrounded on all sides by black walls with only the Night-Luminescent Pearls twinkling, wasn't somewhere you grew older.
And so my mind didn't mature there at all.
Eh... Saying it like that sounds a bit off.
My mind did grow. It just never updated.
On top of that, the effects of Bone Transformation and Marrow Shedding and Rejuvenation to Youth played a role.
If I'd had snow-white hair and beard, a hunched back, and wrinkled skin, I probably would have acknowledged those sixty-seven years.
But all traces of those years had vanished.
My body was incomparably better—tens of thousands of times stronger and more robust—than when I'd arrived at twenty-eight.
For those reasons, I separated the time in the Black Wall Cavern from the life I'd lived.
So even though I've lived ninety-five years, I'm twenty-eight.
Except when it's necessary, like now.
Tang Cheol took the lead, with me right behind him, and Seolha and Yeonhwa walking side by side after me.
And we strode boldly toward the Tang Clan stronghold.
Tang Cheol was over sixty.
But his current demeanor made him look like a kid sneaking home after playing outside late, glancing around nervously.
A posture and expression tinged with slight unease.
That alone showed how radical Tang Cheol's actions were.
It was like publicly exposing his identity, which he'd desperately hidden until now.
Seolha and Yeonhwa seemed to have a lot they wanted to say to me.
Probably about my age. But I sent a brief transmission to my women: "Later."
That was enough.
Seolha quietly signaled her understanding with her eyes, and while Yeonhwa's lips pouted just a touch, it wasn't too obvious.
"Hoo. That's the entrance up ahead."
Tang Cheol took a deep breath and limped forward.
The Tang Clan stronghold didn't have a proper gate. It was just an opening like that.
A grand plaque reading Sichuan Tang Clan.
Powerful calligraphy that seemed ready to writhe to life at any moment.
Even though the Tang Clan was being oppressed, it seemed no one with the guts to touch that dared to.
So I thought their situation might not be as dire as I'd imagined.
If it really were that bad, this place would feel like a warzone.
Martial artists were just that rough a bunch.
As Tang Cheol approached, the eyes of the two men standing at the entrance widened.
Their expressions screamed, "What the hell are you doing here!?"
Of course. It had to be. After hiding his identity so desperately, showing up like this now wouldn't make sense to them.
Gazes poured in from all directions.
I couldn't pinpoint them exactly or count how many there were.
One thing was clear: more than a couple of eyes were watching us right now.
The ones harassing the Sichuan Tang Clan. The spies they'd planted.
They were probably getting a good, clear look at us.
And frantically relaying the info to each other.
"That guy's from the Tang Clan? Who's the bunch trailing behind him!?"
I could hear it in my ears without even looking.
But no matter how hard they tried, they wouldn't figure it out.
I'd hardly ever shown my face carelessly anywhere before.
"I'm back."
"G-Grand Elder Uncle!? Why..."
The Tang Clan men at the entrance must have been around Tang Cheol's grandsons' age.
Makes sense. They looked young. Frail, too, but still.
Since their role was just surveillance, they probably couldn't station real experts there.
"Send word inside. Tell them Tang Cheol has brought esteemed guests."
One of the men darted inside at those words.
Tang Cheol glanced back at his own appearance.
Then he chuckled, straightened his slightly stooped back, and strode in proudly.
We passed countless houses and shops.
Countless people poured into the streets to watch us.
The Tang Clan. The Tang School. Sichuan Tang Clan. The Tangs.
All these people lived in the Tang Clan stronghold.
Not all of them were martial artists. That's what the Tang Clan was like.
A clan family that was like a whole village.
And through their midst strode a man with dignity.
A man who hadn't returned in a long time.
A man who no longer needed to live subserviently.
Another entrance appeared, this one with a proper door.
A large, imposing door. Still bearing a grand plaque.
But the door was open.
And several people stood before the open door.
"Cheol."
"Heh. Brother. Your Cheol has returned."
The Tang Clan Lord. Tang Mun-jeong of the Sichuan Tang Clan. Known as the Poison King.
Said to be the best in the current martial world at using poison. The one who knew the most poisons in the world.
Such a man approached and embraced Tang Cheol.
The clan lord patted Tang Cheol's back a few times before releasing the hug.
"Just who is this precious guest that you've revealed yourself for? Introduce them to me as well."
At that, Tang Cheol looked my way, hesitated a bit unlike the emotional atmosphere, then spoke.
"The lord of Ink Sword Grove from Chang'an. And the two behind him are children of the Namgung family."
"Heh..."
To be honest, the clan lord's reaction showed more interest in Seolha and Yeonhwa than in me.
A curious expression wondering which one was from the Namgung family.
He probably thought the "esteemed guest" Tang Cheol mentioned was Yeonhwa.
Can't have that. Can't let their attention get stolen.
So I released the aura I'd always kept tightly concealed.
A bit childish, sure. But it's the most effective method.
That's why I do it. Sometimes you need to be childish.
Hiding your aura isn't hard. As long as your realm is higher than the opponent's.
The moment I released my aura, not just Clan Lord Tang Mun-jeong, but everyone including Tang Cheol widened their eyes and gaped.
"Gr... Grand Hero!?"
"Gasp..."
Funny thing was, even Seolha and Yeonhwa stammered in shock.
Yeah. Makes sense. I'd never properly shown my true power before.
I'd just flicked things through the air a few times or given martial arts advice.
"Wha... What in the world!?"
"Tang Clan Lord Tang Mun-jeong. They call you the Poison King, right? How old are you?"
Asking his age out of nowhere left the clan lord flustered, and Tang Cheol squeezed his eyes shut.
Hm. A bit unfair? Still, gotta make use of what you've got. Waste not.
"Why ask my age all of a sudden!?"
"Just checking if I should keep speaking casually."
I spread my aura a bit more.
Honestly, it wouldn't be easy for him. Even the clan lord's fingertips were trembling faintly.
The Sichuan Tang Clan specialized in poison and hidden weapons. Their internal energy and cultivation were lacking as a result.
They compensated with techniques and poisons.
But even under the pressure of my aura, the clan lord shielded his retainers.
A fine sight. That's how a clan lord should be.
So I withdrew my aura. This was enough.
Brute-forcing with raw power didn't suit my temperament.
As the aura fully vanished, the clan lord let out a tiny sigh of relief.
He might have endured alone, but protecting his retainers the whole time wouldn't have been easy.
"...I'll turn seventy next year."
"Sixty-nine, huh. Got it. We'll keep it casual, then."
"Just... who are you!? How can you emanate such an aura!?"
I didn't answer. Instead, I rummaged through the bundle at my side and tossed him the vial.
True to his hidden weapon expertise, the clan lord snatched it midair with impressive hand speed.
Then he looked at me, eyes full of doubt.
"That's whatever poisoned Namgung Yeonhwa here when she left her family. It damaged her dantian and scattered her qi. That's what I extracted after it tormented this girl's body for years. You're poison experts, aren't you, the Sichuan Tang Clan? So I brought it—take a look."
"Heh!? You extracted that!? Really!? How!?"
The clan lord was more shocked by my words than when I'd released my aura earlier.
What's this? His reaction's stronger than I expected.
And he seems to know what it is?
"You know what it is?"
"How could I not! Good heavens... No, not here! Come inside. Boys! Escort the Grove Lord in!"
The clan lord seemed a bit flustered.
What could it be? Did they have victims of that poison here too?
But this was the Sichuan Tang Clan. No way they couldn't extract it.
In any case, at the clan lord's command, the Tang Clan treated us with utmost courtesy, and we were led inside.
The largest hall. Probably used when all the clan gathered.
The clan lord sat in the center, I took the seat to his left, Tang Cheol to his right.
Seolha and Yeonhwa sat side by side next to me. Two Tang Clan men beside Tang Cheol.
One was an elder named Tang Gyu-so. An elderly man. Probably older than the clan lord. Still below me, though.
The other was a youth around twenty, named Tang Myeong-un. The Tang Clan's young master, they said.
But I had a question. No matter how I thought about it, something was off.
[Yeonhwa.]
[Yes, Grand Hero.]
[That kid they call the young master. Tang Myeong-un.]
[Yes.]
[He's a guy, right?]
[Pardon? Of course. I met Brother Myeong-un when I was little. And... he's the young master?]
Yeonhwa stated it so matter-of-factly.
Which made the whole situation incomprehensible to me.
No... A guy? That's a woman. Definitely a girl.
That's how she looked to me. Dressed as a man, sure, but definitely a woman.
I was certain.
As I pondered this, the clan lord cleared his throat and spoke.
"Ahem. I still haven't heard the esteemed Grove Lord's great name."
"Ah. Kang Jeong-un. No one'll call me that anyway, so just Grove Lord is fine."
He didn't seem offended by my casual tone.
The elder in front didn't either. Probably because of the realm I'd shown earlier.
The martial world was a place where power solved everything, so their reactions were natural.
As long as I wasn't insulting or harming the Tang Clan, they'd respect me.
The problem was that "boy" who was actually a woman.
Why was she glaring at me with such fierce eyes?
Ah. It's bothering me. Really bothering me.
No matter how I looked, she was a girl. Why couldn't anyone else see it?