Chapter 58
Chapter 58
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: Filth Gate Lord
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Sichuan Province's central city, Chengdu.
This place, once the capital of Shu Han, had been called a land blessed by heaven since ancient times, with soil so fertile it was unmatched.
Surrounded on all four sides by mountains forming a natural fortress, its interior stretched out into vast plains abundant with resources.
The Filth Gate establishing its headquarters here had been something of a coincidence.
Chengdu was a vital hub connecting in every direction, naturally drawing in people from all walks of life.
Imagine yourself at the very bottom of society.
If you had to pick a place to spend your life, wouldn't a bustling metropolis overflowing with people be better than some deserted mountain valley?
Where there are many people, there are many in similar straits—and that means more opportunities.
Begging works better with crowds, and day labor only pays off where there's plenty of work to go around.
Above all, the more people there are, the easier it is to blend in among them.
And so, from bellhops and peddlers to porters, courtesans, and all the rest, those scraping by at society's fringes naturally gathered in Chengdu.
The Filth Gate built its power base from such people and thus began to take root with Chengdu at its center.
But now, a man had stormed into the Filth Gate headquarters.
"You bastard!"
The outraged guards were ready to draw their swords at any moment.
It was because Cheongun looked so utterly ragged.
"Get down here this instant, you insolent punk! Do you even know where you are...!"
The words hadn't even finished.
Cheongun casually flicked his hand with an impassive face.
In that instant, the swords the guards had drawn floated up lightly from their hands.
And moments later, the hovering swords suddenly shot off with a whoosh, embedding themselves into the opposite wall.
Cheongun had used his Object Controlling Technique to snatch their swords and hurl them away.
The guards, who had lost their swords in a blink, stared in dumbfounded shock.
Cheongun gestured again, and this time the other guards' swords flew to the wall.
Bam! Crash! Boom!
They gawked at Cheongun with slack-jawed faces.
You needed weapons to make threats, but a mere boy's hand gestures had left them all empty-handed.
Flinging swords from afar with just gestures?
It was a realm beyond anything they'd heard or seen.
As the guards hesitated with empty hands, Filth Gate disciples finally appeared, late to the scene.
One of the courtesans among them stepped forward and demanded of Cheongun,
"Young hero! What is the meaning of this?!"
"I'm not a young hero."
"...Then a great hero?"
"Not that either."
"......"
The courtesan faltered at Cheongun's demeanor.
Typically, martial artists of renown were addressed as either young hero or great hero.
The most widespread titles in the Central Plains, the simplest way for one warrior to show respect to another.
Even black path masters preferred being called great hero over something like demon head.
'Playing word games?'
As the courtesan froze, Cheongun irritably held out his badge again.
"See this? Justice Alliance insignia."
"Ah, yes, I see it."
"It's the token proving my status as Chief Inspector. I am the Justice Alliance's representative face. The Alliance Leader appointed me personally."
"......"
The courtesan broke out in cold sweat.
Vast Heavens Sword as the Justice Alliance's Chief Inspector? She hadn't heard a thing.
It was only natural.
Cheongun had raided the Filth Gate the moment he got the badge—no time for the news to reach them.
"...May I take a closer look at the badge?"
"It'll wear out. Look from over there."
"......"
She swallowed curses inwardly, stepping back a few paces and squinting at it.
Was Chief Inspector some ordinary post?
She couldn't believe they'd handed such a position to this madman without a whisper.
But what was this?
Suspicious, she checked it over and over, but the craftsmanship and finish screamed authentic no matter the angle.
"No way!"
"They handed it over since I was just sitting there. Jealous?"
"Does that even make sense? Do you know what kind of position Chief Inspector is?!"
"What kind?"
"It's the seat that represents the Justice Alliance traveling the jianghu. A heavy responsibility wielding the Alliance Leader's authority! It sat vacant for years due to lack of talent! No, how does the Chief Inspector not even know what position he's in? Did the Alliance Leader really appoint you personally? What kind of thoughtless decision-making is this...!"
"Didn't ask. Shut up."
"......"
He asks then calls it noisy—such bullshit.
The courtesan ground her teeth and sighed.
"What brings the Justice Alliance Chief Inspector all the way here?"
At that, Cheongun dragged a chair from the corner and sat.
"Bring me the Filth Gate Lord."
She blinked.
"The Lord?"
"Yes."
She pondered briefly.
"And if I refuse?"
"You a martial artist?"
"No. Just a courtesan."
Cheongun clicked his tongue.
This was the Filth Gate's problem.
Most disciples weren't warriors, so he couldn't just strike freely.
The Filth Gate belonged to the black path, but not everyone there was evil.
Some had drifted in exhausted from rock-bottom lives seeking refuge; others got swept up in circumstances and turned villainous.
That was why Cheongun had left the sword-drawing guards unharmed.
But he had no intention of yielding even to civilians.
It was too much hassle.
Having decided, Cheongun said flatly,
"Refuse, and I'll make you bald."
"Follow me."
"Quick surrender."
She flashed a bright smile.
"My hair matters more than the Lord, doesn't it?"
Right. Hair is serious business.
Cheongun nodded and followed her.
Cheongun strolled along humming a tune.
Normally, intruders would draw all sorts swarming out, forcing him to subdue each one—without killing them all, so he'd have to control his strength too.
But flashing one badge skipped all that?
This must be the sweet taste of power.
For Cheongun, who had lived distant from power both before and after possession, it was a novel experience.
The leading courtesan turned right and said,
"This way."
"You know your way around."
"Born and raised here my whole life."
"Parents?"
"Gone. They were, but all died."
"How?"
"So many questions. What, the clichéd sob stories of the gutter all sound the same. They starved for days to feed just me and keeled over."
Cheongun nodded, and the courtesan snapped curtly,
"What's with that reaction?"
"Want sympathy?"
She tsked.
"Hah, forget it. Pity from some pampered rich boy who doesn't know hardship would just piss me off."
"Funny talk. You lost your parents too, but as a pretty girl, you leaned on your looks to join the Filth Gate as a courtesan, living cushy off easy favors—and still full of complaints."
"...You done?"
"My parents got torn apart alive by a bear the size of a hill right before my eyes while foraging herbs. Unlike you, I was a scrawny boy from poverty, barely eating, too weak to work properly. Who hires a kid about to drop dead? Unlike you pouring drinks in comfort, I caught rats to eat and begged on streets for over ten years."
"......"
Not his real parents, of course, but this body's were—instinct made them parents all the same.
Plus, the sudden possession meant he'd never see his original world's parents again either.
The courtesan, who had been spilling her woes, shut her mouth.
Seeing it, Cheongun said wistfully,
"I win."
"......"
Not yielding a single word.
That was the Chief Inspector's true virtue.
Cheongun nodded in satisfaction at upholding the Justice Alliance's dignity today.
The courtesan, crushed in their misery battle, fell silent and led inside.
She glanced back at Cheongun now and then but soon turned away, quickening her steps.
Following her down the long corridor, Cheongun saw a room at the end.
Four warriors stood guard at the door—all peak realm masters by his senses.
Spotting the courtesan, they bowed and stepped aside.
Inside hung a red silk curtain, a woman's bare leg peeking through the gap.
"We're here."
The courtesan parted the curtain, revealing a woman with long black hair sitting there.
Her striking red eyes drew the eye, her black robes cinched with a red sash hugging curves that were both alluring and intimidating.
Cheongun blinked.
"You?"
The woman eyed him up and down and snorted.
"What a joker. You barge in and ask who I am?"
Cheongun still tilted his head.
"Where's the Filth Gate Lord?"
"Thick-headed fool. Right in front of your eyes."
She exhaled softly, lips curling.
"I am the Filth Gate Lord you're looking for."
Cheongun blinked.
...Her, the Gate Lord?
What? In the original story, the Filth Gate Lord was a wrinkled old hag.
The only commonality with this woman was her gender.
Cheongun puzzled over it.
Didn't seem like she'd reversed her age either.
No traces of disguise arts.
No way. But...
There were mods that overhauled ugly male or female characters' appearances.
...Wait.
Did the mod I applied do that too?
"......"
"......"
Then, the Gate Lord staring into Cheongun's eyes spoke.
"State your business, outsider."
To her question, Cheongun replied slowly.
"......Filth Gate Lord, passed."
"Ha!"
The Filth Gate Lord chuckled.
She'd guessed from his lingering stares earlier, but him blurting "passed" blankly? Hilarious guy.
She leaned forward teasingly.
"Fun one, aren't you? Does my face please you that much?"
Cheongun replied,
"What're you talking about?"
"Joker. Didn't you just say 'passed' with that mouth?"
Cheongun nodded.
Then pulled out the badge and shoved it at her.
"Passed. Not you, me."
"......What?"
"From now on, I'm the Filth Gate Lord. Complaints go to the Justice Alliance."
"......"