Chapter 562: Harboring Suspicion
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 562: Harboring Suspicion
The Gu Clan has been annihilated.
This shocking news spread like wildfire beyond the Cheonmu Alliance and across the entire Murim. Countless people expressed their disbelief at the clan's sudden downfall.
The Gu Clan was a prestigious family within the Murim, known for their high virtue and unwavering commitment to chivalry. They were a paragon for many wandering heroes. Because of this, they had few enemies, and the martial arts of the clan’s warriors were exceptional, making them a group of considerable military might.
Furthermore, the Gu Clan was located in Jinan, which was essentially the front yard of the Cheonmu Alliance.
Who could possibly have the power to wipe out such a family?
Soon, the eyes of the world turned toward the Cheonmu Alliance. Since the victim was one of the Alliance’s Hall Masters, everyone wondered what course of action they would take.
*
"Every member of the Gu Clan is dead. This includes the family members as well as the servants. In the case of the servants, every single one of them was decapitated. Not a single person was spared. As for Hall Master Gu Ja-yeop, his body was completely dismembered. His wife, his daughter, and the Great Hero Gu Gang-tae were all crushed to death."
Paeng Ga-ryeon, a woman with sharp features, held up the report and continued in a calm tone.
"Given that the daughter and wife were found naked and sexual fluid was present, it appears they were raped by the culprit."
Paeng Ga-ryeon’s sharp eyes glinted as she spoke.
"We believe it was the work of a single perpetrator from the outside. All the wounds were identical, and there was only one set of footprints belonging to an outsider."
She looked around at the gathered leaders.
"We have yet to determine the culprit's motive. Nothing was stolen, and nothing was destroyed. This suggests that money was not the objective. A crime motivated by a grudge seems the most likely. That is all."
Having finished her report, Paeng Ga-ryeon looked at the leadership.
"......The autopsy...?"
At that moment, Heo Sam-gwan, the Hall Master of Palbok Hall, raised his hand and asked.
"It seems unnecessary. The bodies were so thoroughly dismantled that no clues could be found."
"............"
Hearing this, Heo Sam-gwan bit his lip, his expression twisted in agony. He had been a close friend of Gu Ja-yeop, a bond of friendship that had lasted decades. To hear that such a friend had been murdered in such a gruesome manner—how could he not be in pain?
"Is it... impossible to know where the culprit went?"
"Unfortunately, we could not determine that."
"You said you found footprints! If we follow those footprints, surely something will turn up!"
Heo Sam-gwan raised his voice, shouting. She had clearly stated that the footprints proved it was an outsider. That meant they had identified the culprit's tracks. How could they not track him down? They only had to follow the prints.
"That is... where it gets strange."
"Strange? How?"
Heo Sam-gwan stared at her with a questioning gaze. What could possibly be strange about it?
"The footprints simply vanished midway."
"Vanished!?"
Heo Sam-gwan asked back with a dazed expression. What on earth did that mean?
"Yes. As if the culprit had soared into the sky, they disappeared completely."
Paeng Ga-ryeon continued calmly. As she said, they had found footprints identified as the culprit's. They had followed them, as it was the only clue to catching the killer. But that sole clue had ended in vain. The trail simply cut off. In the middle of an empty clearing, it was as if he had ascended into the heavens.
"Haaa..."
Heo Sam-gwan let out a long sigh. He felt a deep sense of frustration at the reality that they couldn't even identify the culprit.
"Then... you're saying it's... impossible to find the one who killed the Yellow Turban Hall Master?"
He looked at her, his eyes filled with sorrow.
"As of now, yes," Paeng Ga-ryeon replied flatly.
"Sigh..."
"How can this be..."
"To think..."
Lamentations and sighs began to erupt from all corners of the room. A comrade who shared their cause had lost his life, and in a most brutal fashion. To hear that they couldn't even identify the killer, let alone catch him, naturally brought forth such reactions. The Gu Clan, which had served the Cheonmu Alliance for decades, had met a dog's death that no one would ever answer for. How could they not grieve?
"However," Paeng Ga-ryeon added slowly. "I believe we can narrow down a few characteristics."
"Narrow them down?"
"Yes. A crime scene always leaves clues, however faint they may be."
"Then tell us what you've narrowed down."
"Most of it is my own speculation. Is that acceptable?"
"It doesn't matter! Speculation or whatever, tell us everything!" Heo Sam-gwan urged. They were at a point where even the smallest lead was necessary. He didn't care if it was just a guess.
"Very well. Then I will share my rough deductions."
Paeng Ga-ryeon looked around the room and slowly opened her mouth.
"First, this incident was driven by a deep-seated grudge. It wasn't a robbery for money, but a calculated act of revenge. Therefore, it is highly likely the culprit is someone who held a grudge against the Yellow Turban Hall Master."
Her eyes sparkled as she continued.
"Second, the culprit is a single male. Judging by the size of the footprints and the stride, they were far too wide and heavy to belong to a woman."
She spoke in a steady voice.
"Third, the culprit is a master who has reached a realm so distant that we cannot even hope to approach it."
"A master of such a distant realm? Exactly what level are you talking about?" Heo Sam-gwan asked, looking puzzled. He couldn't grasp the standard of 'master' she was referring to.
"Upon investigating the scene, I found no traces of a struggle anywhere. What do you think that implies?" Paeng Ga-ryeon countered with a question of her own.
"............It implies a one-sided massacre."
Heo Sam-gwan spoke slowly, his expression grim. He felt the gravity of the fact that the Gu Clan, which possessed the strength of a mid-sized sect, had been unilaterally slaughtered by a single man.
"Correct. Ten Peak Realm experts serving as guests, fifty first-rate warriors, and eighty second-rate warriors—all were annihilated. It was an act of one-sided violence. Furthermore, the Yellow Turban Hall Master, who had reached the Super-Peak Realm, and the former Yellow Turban Hall Master, the Nine-Moon Sword Gu Gang-tae, met their gruesome ends without even being able to put up a proper fight."
Paeng Ga-ryeon continued with a stoic face.
"The culprit is strong. Strong enough to easily wipe out a mid-sized sect."
".......Then... are they a master of the Transcendent Realm?" Heo Sam-gwan asked with a trembling voice.
"No."
Paeng Ga-ryeon shook her head in denial.
"At minimum, they are in the Profound Realm."
Her eyes flashed as she spoke.
"Wh-What!?"
"The... the Profound Realm!?"
"What are you saying!?"
"The Profound Realm... the Profound Realm!?"
The leaders gasped in horror, their eyes wide with shock. The words she uttered were entirely unexpected. What kind of stage was the Profound Realm? Was it not the supreme realm called the Half-Immortal stage—a transcendence beyond the Transcendent Realm, which was considered the limit of humanity, and a step toward becoming an immortal? How could she speak of such a realm so casually?
"Hall Master of Law Enforcement, how can you be so certain?" Heo Sam-gwan asked, staring at her with absolute seriousness. "How can you be so sure they are in the Profound Realm?"
"I saw the cross-sections of the corpses," she replied calmly.
"The cross-sections?"
"Yes. They were incredibly clean, chilling, and... beautiful."
"You deduced their realm just by looking at the cross-sections? You, who are merely at the Super-Peak Realm?" Heo Sam-gwan scoffed.
Paeng Ga-ryeon was only at the Super-Peak Realm. How could she conclude the culprit was a master of the Profound Realm just by looking at a cut? It was a leap of logic—a massive one at that.
"Of course, I cannot deduce such a realm on my own. The Profound Realm is an unknown territory that I have never stepped foot in."
Paeng Ga-ryeon agreed with Heo Sam-gwan. For her, who hadn't even reached the Transcendent Realm, to distinguish the Profound Realm was absurd.
"But the Great Matriarch is different," she added.
"I saw those chilling cross-sections and asked the Great Matriarch for help. I asked her what level of master could create a cut so terrifying that it sends shivers down one's spine."
Paeng Ga-ryeon’s eyes glinted.
"And the Great Matriarch said... that the culprit is a master at least a level above herself."
"The Great Matriarch said that!?"
"The Best Among Women said such a thing!?"
"How could that be!?"
The leaders shouted in shock. They had lost their composure at this staggering revelation. Joo So-yang, the Great Matriarch. She was a hero of the Great War of Righteousness and Demons and an absolute master who had reached the Upper Stage of the Transcendent Realm, the very limit of human potential. For her to mention someone being 'above' her?
Her statement meant only one thing: the culprit who annihilated the Gu Clan was a master who had reached the Profound Realm.
"Well? Do you find my words more credible now?" Paeng Ga-ryeon asked.
"................."
The leaders fell silent. They had reached a silent consensus. Her speculations were likely very close to the truth.
"To summarize, the conclusion is that the culprit is a man in the Profound Realm who harbors a grudge against the Gu Clan or the Yellow Turban Hall Master."
Paeng Ga-ryeon repeated her summary to drive the point home.
"............"
The leaders fell into deep thought, each trying to deduce who fit that description.
"Ah!"
Suddenly, Heo Sam-gwan, the Hall Master of Palbok Hall, let out an exclamation as if he had realized something.
Thud.
He stood up abruptly from his seat. Then, he turned toward the head of the table.
"Alliance Leader... I hope you do not misinterpret my words. I am only asking because I wish to be certain."
Heo Sam-gwan looked at Lee Jae-won, who had been sitting quietly at the head of the table, with eyes full of suspicion.
"Where were you, and what were you doing between the Hour of the Rat and the Hour of the Tiger, the time the Gu Clan is believed to have been destroyed?"
"......Are you suspecting me?"
Lee Jae-won spoke with a look of displeasure, clearly unhappy with Heo Sam-gwan's suspicion.
"It is not suspicion. I simply wish to make things clear."
"Isn't that the same thing? You're making things clear because you don't trust me, isn't that right?" Lee Jae-won replied curtly.
"Of course not. I trust you implicitly, Alliance Leader. But there is no guarantee that others trust you as much as I do, is there? Please give me the chance to prove your innocence to those ignorant people."
Heo Sam-gwan spoke with a smooth, oily expression.
"So please, tell us. What were you doing between the Hour of the Rat and the Hour of the Tiger that day?" Heo Sam-gwan asked again, his eyes sharp.
"I was attending to personal business," Lee Jae-won replied flatly.
"That personal business is exactly what is important. What kind of personal business were you handling?" Heo Sam-gwan pressed him relentlessly.
"Do I not have the right to keep my private life from you?" Lee Jae-won said, his irritation growing.
"You must disclose it. That is, if you wish to properly clear yourself of suspicion," Heo Sam-gwan said, staring Lee Jae-won down with an unwavering gaze. "To be honest, I suspect the Alliance Leader very much right now."
Heo Sam-gwan’s voice dropped to a secretive tone.
"And why do you think that?" Lee Jae-won asked back, his face composed.
"Because you are the only one who fits all the criteria."
Heo Sam-gwan met his gaze with clear eyes.
"I know that you, Alliance Leader, held a considerable grudge against the Yellow Turban Hall Master, Gu Ja-yeop."
Heo Sam-gwan continued in a calm voice.
"Furthermore, I am well aware that you are a man with the martial power to easily annihilate the Gu Clan."
"That is mere speculation."
Lee Jae-won dismissed his words as groundless conjecture, not even worth considering.
"Whether it is speculation or not depends entirely on your statement, Alliance Leader."
Heo Sam-gwan glared at Lee Jae-won once more.
"I will ask one more time... what were you doing at that time?"
Heo Sam-gwan stared at Lee Jae-won with an incredibly serious gaze. Facing that gaze, Lee Jae-won frowned slightly. He hadn't expected the arrows to be turned toward him so quickly.
"I... I was..."
Hearing Heo Sam-gwan's demand, Lee Jae-won slowly opened his mouth.