Chapter 209
Chapter 209
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 209
Chapter Title: The Returned Scoundrel (4)
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A long while after blending techniques with Yong-myeong.
"Hoo."
Taking advantage of the brief moment to catch our breath, Master spoke up.
"...Hm. It's clear you've neglected the Eon Family Fist." 'Is that so?'
"Look at Yong-myeong. His breathing, his steps, his fists. Aren't they all connected by the subtleties of the Eon Family Fist? Whereas you, Yong-un, your style isn't really the Eon Family Fist at all. It's closer to the Heaven-Splitting Swordsmanship executed with fists." As Master spoke, Yong-myeong's fists came pouring in again.
I deflected them while responding.
Bam!!
Pow pow pow! Thud! Thud!
'So what? As long as I don't get hit and can beat the enemy, that's fine, right?' "So what? You fool, didn't your father say that this verification assembly would be the stage to prove your Eon Family Fist?" 'He did.'
"Then, instead of getting used to facing the Eon Family Fist, shouldn't you focus on refining the forms you've forgotten?" '...Isn't that just the claim those Elder Council folks are using as their pretext?'
If I were desperate to hang onto their decision, then yes, Master's advice would be spot on.
But I wasn't that desperate for reinstatement.
'Do I have nowhere else to go if not here?' Mother and Father would be heartbroken if they heard my true feelings, but that's how I felt.
'I have no intention of being bound by the framework of reinstatement.' If that sly old fox Eon Gil-hoi and his followers dragged me to the verification assembly?
I'd just turn it into a classroom for a proper thrashing, my way.
'So even if they claim at the end that what I showed wasn't the Eon Family Fist, it doesn't matter.' As long as I turned every Jin-gang branch lord who stepped up into a bloody pulp, that would be enough.
'So just one form is enough.' No more, no less. Just one proper Eon Family Fist form.
If I could show even one, that would give them justification to continue the verification assembly.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Pow pow pow!!!
With that in mind, I was trying to get used to facing the Eon Family Fist first.
Then a voice came from behind me.
"You need to extend it a bit more."
At that voice, Yong-myeong hurriedly retracted his steps.
I turned my head toward the source of the voice.
It was none other than my father, Eon Jeong-ung.
"Father?"
"Show me that punch you just threw one more time."
At Father's words,
I slowly demonstrated the side fist thrust I'd executed in my own style.
"Like this?"
As I showed the motion, Father quietly shook his head.
"You need to step forward a bit more with your right leg."
Father silently stood behind me, then slowly nudged my foot forward with his right foot.
With a stern expression, he placed his hands on my left waist and right arm respectively, adjusting my posture.
"Keep your waist like this. Don't rotate and thrust your right fist out. Drive it straight like a stab. Only when the side fist connects with the opponent do you grip it into a proper fist and infuse your internal energy to twist."
I recalled the posture Father had set and thrust out my fist anew.
"...Like this?"
Father nodded and spoke.
"That's Grid Table Soul Scatter. It scatters the enemy's po soul by striking the exterior. The beginning and end of the Eon Family Fist lies in this most basic motion. When you were young, I made you repeat just this one, but you ran off saying it was boring, and your form is still immature..."
As he brought up stories from a time I didn't remember, I simply held my tongue.
"......"
But Father seemed to interpret my silence differently and cleared his throat awkwardly.
"Ahem. I'm not scolding you."
"Pardon?"
"...I meant to say it's important, but the conversation veered off."
To cut off the increasingly awkward atmosphere, I spoke up.
"Yes. Grid Table Soul Scatter. I'll remember it well."
But that seemed to touch a corner of Father's heart again.
Father gazed at the distant mountains and spoke.
"If only I'd explained from the start why you needed to master it today, instead of just making you train... The fault lies with me for teaching straight from the book without considering your temperament."
"......"
I averted my gaze to avoid meeting Father's eyes.
At that moment, I spotted Mother, Chief Steward Gam, and my younger siblings standing at the entrance of Eon Yun-gak, watching us.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The Chengdu Basin appears beyond the great mountain range where even birds rest.
The clustered tile-roofed houses in one corner of the Chengdu Basin were called the Tang Family Village by the people of Sichuan.
Among the many tile-roofed houses in the Tang Family Village, the one resembling a whale's back was what the world called the Sichuan Tang Clan.
In the apothecary of this place, Tang Ok-gi, who had returned to her home clan, was pressing the wizened physicians about the Hundred Poison Pill.
"How is it, old man?"
"The reaction when this reagent is applied is definitely similar to the Thousand Poison Pill. We'll need more investigation, but with further research, we could significantly reduce the production cost of the Thousand Poison Pill...!"
"Right?!"
"Yes. But how did you obtain the Blood Water Myriad Poison Brew? The allowance from the Family Head shouldn't have been enough."
"A friend helped."
"A friend? You mean Miss Jeon Yeon-seol?"
"Not Yeon-seol, another friend."
"Eh? You have another friend?"
"Kek!! Do I seem that antisocial?"
"Honestly, not really... no. Miss, you have to suspect anyone you meet outside the Tang Family Village first. There's not a single trustworthy one."
As the old physician spoke, Tang Ok-gi was about to reply.
Then a middle-aged man burst into the apothecary, his long robe fluttering, and opened his mouth.
"What were you talking about that there's no one trustworthy?"
He was Tang Ho-tae, the head of the Sichuan Tang Clan and Tang Ok-gi's father.
"Something like that happened."
The world called him the Poison Sage and feared him subtly,
but in the Tang Family Village, he was a notorious doting father known to all.
Tang Ho-tae subtly expressed his disappointment at his daughter hiding something from him.
"Ok-gi, when you come home, you should visit your father first. What's so great about this moldy old apothecary that you come here before me?"
"I heard you were meeting someone, so I came to discuss the Hundred Poison Pill from my last letter."
"I said to send word when you arrived and we'd meet later."
With that preamble, Tang Ho-tae turned to the physician examining the crushed Hundred Poison Pill and spoke.
"How is it? This Hundred Poison Pill that Ok-gi made."
"Even when she first mentioned it, I thought it had potential, and seeing it now, it seems promising. We'll need more verification, but if my hunch is right, the Hundred Poison Pill will be a great asset to the Tang Clan. Heh heh heh."
"Keh heh heh. Of course, of course. It's my child's research, so naturally."
The two burst into hearty laughter, rejoicing,
but Tang Ok-gi rolled her eyes and snapped at them.
"What are you saying? I told you all not to do useless things and to be careful with people at the academy."
Tang Ho-tae cleared his throat awkwardly and spoke.
"Ahem. So, how's life at the academy? You did well entering Hyang-ran Hall as I suggested, right? There may be no one trustworthy in the world, but the cadets there are at least basically..."
"I don't know about Hyang-ran Hall..."
"......?"
"...Well, academy life is fun."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Meanwhile,
at a ferry landing in Namjik-ye, Mo Yong-rin and Yin Xia Lian were bidding farewell to Southern Jiang Merchant King Eun Se-pyeong.
"It was an honor to share tea with the Sword Empress. Ha-yeon is lacking in many ways. Please take good care of her."
"At least to me, Ha-yeon doesn't seem like a lacking disciple. I'm more worried if I can be a good master. Anyway, it was nice meeting you. Ha-yeon."
"Yes, Master."
"I'll board first. Take your time saying goodbye to your father."
"Understood."
Mo Yong-rin meant for them to share some father-daughter affection,
but the relationship between Eun Se-pyeong and Yin Xia Lian was quite different from most.
"Please convey my thanks to Young Master Eon. Thanks to him, we could sign a good contract with the Murim Alliance."
"Yes. Father, please hurry the preparations for the messenger bird network for Young Master Eon's gazette business."
"I will. Oh, I heard you're planning to acquire a forge in Dan-gang-gu. Need anything for that?"
"You're not going to help with just words, right?"
"Of course not."
"We'll handle it for now. Be careful these days with the Yangtze area so chaotic."
"You too. Work hard."
After finishing business talk and farewells with Eun Se-pyeong, Yin Xia Lian boarded the boat.
Once aboard, Yin Xia Lian suddenly gazed beyond the rippling Yangtze.
Toward the north, where the Pearl Eon Family lay.
"There won't be no incidents... I hope they're all right."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A week flew by like an arrow, and the clan assembly was convened.
The heads of major branch families, and the merchant groups, escort agencies, and martial halls operating under the Pearl Eon Family's name gathered in one place.
"By the Family Head's authority, Eon Yong-un was reinstated, but we demand verification that he has not forgotten the spirit of the Eon Family. Family Head, respond to this."
Here, Jin River Branch Lord Eon Gil-hoi demanded my verification as announced.
"I believe restoring the Corpse Technique lineage is more than enough reason for reinstatement. Why is further verification needed?"
"Even if it's true he restored the Corpse Technique lineage, you're not handing out manuals to the branches right away, are you?"
"Exactly! The name Eon Yong-un may carry weight in Hebei and Shanxi regions, but here in Hubei, there are more who suffered losses. Victims won't show goodwill to the family just for restoring the Corpse Technique lineage. How could that be sufficient?"
Several elders and those aligned with the Jin River Branch Lord fervently agreed.
"Then, how do you propose to verify?"
"The Corpse Technique is one thing, but the spirit of the Eon Family lies in fist techniques. Since the Family Head won't yield to our advice, if Eon Yong-un has the courage, let him prove here, before the assembled clan, that he qualifies for reinstatement through fist techniques."
Thus, as anticipated, the verification assembly was set.
As seats for the clan members were arranged in the grand training hall,
Yong-myeong compiled a list of those stepping up for the verification and handed it to me.
"Excluding the Jin River Branch Lord, all elder-level figures are participating. From the Jin River branch, that Eon Yong-muk guy is coming forward."
Cheon Jang-ho clicked his tongue and spoke to So Neung beside him.
"Tsk. Not sure if it's okay to say this, but this is a total mess. I should retract my interest in becoming an adopted son here."
"...Were you ever serious about that?"
"...Halfway?"
Peng So-jin ignored the two and laid out what he knew.
"From what I remember, True Nature Branch Lord and True Origin Branch Lord are at peak mastery level, and True Equal Branch Lord is at transcendent..."
Before Peng So-jin could finish,
Jeong Hyeon furrowed his brow and interjected.
"Sorry to interrupt, but something doesn't make sense. Didn't you say before, Peng Gongzi, that you'd heard rumors Young Master Eon reached transcendent level? You have ears, so how are these peak masters stepping up?"
"Who knows? It's not a life-or-death duel anyway... Maybe they're relying on their seniority."
"Primordial Heavenly Venerable. These clan members don't know Young Master Eon at all."
"But considering what Yong-un did in Hubei, it's understandable they can't believe it. I was stunned at first too. Right, pig?"
"Huh? What?"
"...Never mind. Let's drop it."
Then word came that preparations were complete.
"Young master. Everything's ready, please come to the training hall."
"Let's go. Everyone, follow."
I led my younger siblings to the grand training hall under Chief Steward Gam's guidance.
As we appeared, some retainers murmured.
"It's only been seven days since he returned home, and this happens."
"Yeah. I thought the young master was truly vicious when he was in the family, but it was all an act to protect us from the Demonic Cult... After hearing that, I've felt bad for him. How can clan members act like this?"
"And all the elders stepping up too. They call it verification, but isn't it just openly planning to whip the young master? The Madam must be heartbroken."
I overheard warriors discussing my skills from rumors.
"The servants think the young master can't handle the elders. If the rumors are true and he's reached transcendent... aside from Jin River Branch Lord or True Equal Branch Lord, who could stand against him?"
"From their perspective, the elders seem far superior, so naturally. But is it really true? His posture and aura have changed completely, but his image from back then was so intense, it's hard to believe."
In the midst of that, Father spoke in a stern voice.
"True Nature Branch Lord, who expressed intent to participate in the verification, step into the arena."
The True Nature Branch Lord who entered made an exaggerated clasped-hands salute toward the surroundings,
then looked down at me and spoke.
"I'll yield three moves."
At his waist, Master clicked his tongue.
"Tsk tsk tsk. What a load of crap." 'Don't be too harsh.'
"Don't be too harsh? I'm holding back from cursing." 'Why curse? He's yielding on his own. I love that.'
Yielding three moves just to save face even in death?
That's why I stick around the orthodox martial world.
"Yong-un, enter the arena."
I handed Regret to Jeong Hyeon and stepped into the arena at Father's command.
"Since you're yielding, this junior will gladly accept without reservation?"
I didn't wait for a reply.
Without delay, I executed Shadowless Heaven-Splitting Step, kicking off the ground,
and followed with the Grid Table Soul Scatter form Father taught me.
Screeech!
The middle-aged elder called True Nature Branch Lord startled at my fist thrusting far faster than expected and barely dodged aside.
"Gasp!"
Thanks to that, he narrowly avoided my first fist strike,
but dodging was merely the first strike.
He hadn't shaken me off.
True Nature Branch Lord was still within my range.
Whish!
I twisted my body immediately, extending my hand like a claw to grab his collar.
Smack!
Thus, two of the three yielded moves had passed, yet True Nature Branch Lord broke his own word and attacked my face.
He had no choice in the collared state to escape.
'This... is an elder?'
Seeing an elder resort to this against me, far junior in status, just to bury me, I couldn't help sneering.
Screech!
Whoosh!
I easily dodged True Nature Branch Lord's fist, not hiding my scorn.
"Didn't you say you'd yield three moves? Still one left."
"......!"
Then I yanked the gripped collar hard, smashing my forehead into his nose bridge.
Crack!
Once wasn't enough.
Twice.
Crack!!
"Guhk?!"
He still seemed conscious.
Once more.
Crack!!!!
"......"
That was the end.
I released the collar of the nose-bleeding, limp True Nature Branch Lord,
and turned to the platform where the elders sat.
"Next. Come up. Weren't you going to verify me?"