Chapter 120: The Yongbong Gathering (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 120: The Yongbong Gathering (1)
Geum Chun-bong had declared her intention to become Geum Hee.
She had vowed to reveal the name "Geum Hee" to the entire world at the upcoming Yongbong Gathering. Naturally, since she was staking the Geum family name on this event, her only acceptable outcome was absolute victory.
Because of this, Chun-bong was overflowing with motivation, and Seo-jun did everything in his power to assist with her training.
Receiving personal guidance from a Super Peak expert who knew her even better than she knew herself? For any martial artist, it would be nothing short of a fateful encounter. And Geum Chun-bong was lucky enough to have that fateful encounter standing by her side at all times.
Under Seo-jun’s meticulous guidance, Chun-bong sharpened her skills to a razor's edge. She reawakened the combat senses that had dulled during her long struggle with severed meridians and polished her Azure Cloud Divine Sword, an art she had previously neglected.
Perhaps stimulated by her rapid progress, Namgung Su-ah—who was already training to a concerning degree—pushed herself even harder.
To support them both, Seo-jun temporarily set aside his own cultivation. However, they now faced one particular obstacle.
"You're all working hard again today."
Namgung Hyeok approached, scratching his chin as if he felt a bit awkward himself.
"What is it this time?" Seo-jun asked.
"Ho ho, must I have a reason to visit? …It's nothing much, I just came to ask when the wedding will be held."
Even in the midst of his pestering, the old man seemed to have no intention of actually disrupting their training, always slinking over specifically during their breaks. It was almost more absurd that he put so much effort into his timing.
"Well…"
Seo-jun had nothing to say and simply pursed his lips. Then, feeling a stinging gaze boring into the side of his head, he glanced over to see Chun-bong staring at him with wide, glaring eyes.
The veins bulged on the back of her hand as she gripped her sword tightly. He didn't know exactly what he'd done, but he knew that if he said the wrong thing right now, that sword might just come swinging at his neck.
As Seo-jun’s eyes darted around seeking an escape, Namgung Su-ah, who had been cooling off her sweat, stepped forward.
"Great-Granduncle."
"Oh, yes, yes."
Namgung Hyeok welcomed her with a bright smile. She was the one who had brought a treasure into the clan, making her a treasure herself.
Namgung Su-ah gave a small chuckle at his reaction. "We’re planning to take the marriage a bit slowly. It won’t be too late to hold the ceremony after we’ve enjoyed our time dating, right?"
"Right, right. You’re absolutely correct."
"Hehe, isn’t that so? Since you’re here, why don’t you rest a bit before you go? I can’t serve you proper tea since we’re at the training grounds, but I do have a drink."
Namgung Su-ah handed Namgung Hyeok a sweet drink made from sugarcane. It was something Chun-bong had stocked up on in large quantities from the inn.
"This is Celadon Incense! I used to drink this a lot when I was young…"
As he carefully sipped the Celadon Incense, Namgung Hyeok’s expression grew distant, as if he were reminiscing about the past. "Yes, those were the days. When I was young, I poured everything into reaching the Transcendent Realm as quickly as possible to make the Namgung Clan even greater… but I shouldn't have let myself be so consumed by it…"
"It’s because of people like you that the Namgung Clan exists as it does today," Su-ah replied softly. "Thanks to your hard work, Great-Granduncle, you are making a huge contribution to the clan even now."
"Me…?"
"Of course. Not to mention your martial prowess, how many people are there who remember the past in such detail? While it’s important to evolve with the changing times, it’s just as important not to forget the old ways and to preserve tradition. How many people in the current clan can maintain that balance like you?"
"Ahem…"
Watching this masterful manipulation, Seo-jun marveled inwardly.
‘So that’s the secret to how she became the idol of the Namgung Clan…!’
In that short span of time, Namgung Hyeok had been completely disarmed, melting into a nostalgic old man. The look in his eyes, which had previously viewed Namgung Su-ah merely as a lucky charm, had now softened into the gaze of a grandfather reuniting with his biological granddaughter after a lifetime of hardship.
"…Thank you for saying that. But this is no time for this. I’m sorry for interrupting your training. If it would be of any help, would you like me to take a look at your martial arts?"
"Hehe, I would be so grateful if you did."
With just a few sweet words, Namgung Su-ah had secured the personal tutelage of Namgung Hyeok.
Though his combat instincts had rusted to the point where he couldn't show his true strength in a spar with Seo-jun, he was still an elite martial artist with one foot in the Transcendent Realm. Furthermore, since his stage was achieved entirely through the martial arts of the Namgung Clan, he would be of greater help to Namgung Su-ah than anyone else in the world. He could provide her with invaluable insights from a completely different perspective than Namgung Jin-cheon.
Seo-jun poked Chun-bong in the side. "I’ll make sure to teach our Chun-bu-i diligently too."
"Don’t poke my side…!"
"Oh? Has our Chun-bong put on some weight? Your side is quite soft."
"…Say that again."
"Hehe, sorry…"
In any case, the preparations for the Yongbong Gathering were proceeding steadily.
* * *
Contrary to their initial thought that there was plenty of time before they had to leave for Henan, the group ended up departing the clan earlier than expected.
When asked for the reason, Namgung Myeong replied, "In the case of the Nine Great Sects and One Clan or the Six Great Clans, it is possible to advance two people per sect or family directly to the finals."
"Ah, so that’s why…"
"If Miss Geum wants to compete under the name of the Geum family, she has to fight her way through the preliminaries, so we have no choice but to leave early."
The Nine Great Sects and One Clan or the Six Great Clans could skip the preliminaries?
One might think it was a special privilege, and in fact, it was. If you didn't like it, you just had to grow your own power and join their ranks. The backlash from other martial artists wasn't that great either. (Of course, it wouldn't have mattered even if they did protest.)
To begin with, the rising stars coming out of such massive factions were on a completely different level of skill compared to ordinary martial artists. Rather than meeting such monsters in the preliminaries and being eliminated early, most felt it was better to scramble amongst those of similar skill and hope for a lucky break into the finals. That way, at least a minimum amount of honor would follow.
It was a win-win situation. The only ones who might feel slighted were those from large sects that didn't quite make the cut for the Nine Great Sects or Six Great Clans, but since they didn't dare raise their voices against the titans, they just had to swallow their bad luck.
"Because of that, we can’t just send anyone to the finals from our side either," Namgung Myeong added. "If a rising star who advanced to the finals through such a privilege were to be defeated too helplessly, it would be a massive embarrassment for the clan."
"Aha. Then, what happens? Are the slots for those who get the privilege to go straight to the finals rarely full?"
"That’s usually the case. If there’s no one who meets the standards, the sect might not participate in the Yongbong Gathering at all."
So that was how it worked.
Seo-jun nodded in understanding and poked his head out of the carriage window. There was one carriage following right behind them. It also bore the crest of the Namgung Clan.
In the carriage Seo-jun was riding were Chun-bong, Namgung Myeong, and Namgung Su-ah. In the other carriage were Namgung Hyeok, Jang-geuk, and Pae Jin-gwang.
Despite being in the middle of a war, it was a fairly luxurious lineup. Three combatants at the Super Peak level nearing the Transcendent Realm, and one regular Super Peak. Wasn't this a force that could wipe out most large sects with a few waves of a hand?
In addition to them, the number of people was quite significant when including the guards and coachmen. However, it didn't feel excessive. Namgung Myeong and Namgung Su-ah were present. Since two direct descendants of the Namgung Clan were traveling together, if anything were to happen to them, it would be a truly catastrophic event.
One unusual point was that both Namgung Hyeok and Pae Jin-gwang had volunteered to act as guards. Namgung Hyeok had been horrified at the news that the clan’s treasures were going outside and immediately insisted on coming along, while Pae Jin-gwang followed Seo-jun simply because he was bored.
Jang-geuk was just dragged along by Seo-jun.
"Hey! Aren’t you bored?" Seo-jun shouted out the window.
Suddenly, a large hand popped out of the window of the following carriage. And then, it promptly flipped him the middle finger.
"Wait, has that old man lost his mind?"
It was Pae Jin-gwang. He had claimed he wanted to understand the culture of today’s youth, and apparently, he had only learned things like that. Lately, he was acting like nothing more than an overgrown brat.
As the group headed toward Henan while grumbling back and forth, they encountered an unexpected incident. A group of insane bandits had jumped out, claiming they were going to collect a toll.
"Their professional spirit is just…" Seo-jun marveled as he cast a spell.
Five Elements, Earth, Ejection.
Small stone pillars erupted from the ground, tightly binding the bandits' entire bodies.
"Gah…! What is this!"
"A-A master…!"
"Please spare us, Great Hero…!"
He could have just slaughtered them all at once, but Seo-jun was so curious that he left them alive and asked a question.
"Hey, can’t you see this?"
The crest of the Namgung Clan was clearly engraved on the carriage. When Seo-jun pointed to it, the bandits looked bewildered.
"W-What is that…?"
"Oh…"
Bandits who didn't recognize the crest of the Namgung Clan, of all things? Dumbfounded, Seo-jun asked Namgung Hyeok.
"By any chance, did we change our crest recently?"
"The crest has been exactly the same since before I was born."
The bandits were simply as stupid as bandits could be. When Seo-jun stared at the former bandit Jang-geuk, the man also shook his head in disappointment.
"It seems bandits these days lack the absolute basics."
"Still, isn't this a bit too much?"
"They’re people who have built a wall between themselves and studying, so… I suppose they’re just a particularly severe case…"
"This isn't easy, really."
They tied the bandits up, dragged them along, and handed them over to the authorities in a nearby city. The sect that took custody of the bandits seemed quite pleased. Whether they beheaded them or used them as slaves was up to them; as long as they didn't grind them up to make elixirs, no one would say a word.
Fortunately, they didn't encounter any more bandits that stupid for the rest of the trip.
Instead, there was a time when heavy snow fell during their journey. On that day, they stayed at an inn in a nearby city and enjoyed a massive snowball fight. The snowball fight was overwhelmingly won by Seo-jun, who used his sorcery to fire snowballs like a machine gun.
Chun-bong, completely covered in snow, got furious and beat Seo-jun up. But since he considered it a perk of the trade, he enjoyed the beating to his heart's content as if it were the winner's prize.
As time passed, the snow melted, and by the time green sprouts were peeking out of the soil, the group finally arrived in Henan.
"Wow, Henan!"
Technically, it hadn't been that long since he was last here, but for some reason, the scenery of Henan felt like a long-awaited return. Seo-jun gave Chun-bong a shoulder ride and did a lap around the neighborhood.
After unpacking at the Namgung Clan’s villa in Henan, Namgung Myeong spoke with a faint smile. "There’s still quite a bit of time before the preliminaries, so it might be good to look around Henan in the meantime."
The Yongbong Gathering was one of the few massive events in the Murim. As such, people had flocked to Henan early on, making the commercial district more active than ever. Since there was still time before the gathering officially began, now—when it was relatively less crowded—was the optimal time to enjoy some sightseeing.
"Then shall we drop by the Hao Sect after a long time?"
At Seo-jun’s words, Namgung Su-ah smiled softly. "Right. Now that I think about it, I promised to go listen to Chwi-ryeong play the zither."
"Chwi-ryeong? Who’s that?"
"You know, from back then. When we went boating. She was one of the courtesans."
"Wait, you became friends that quickly?"
Seo-jun was shocked. He had wondered where Namgung Myeong’s capybara-like sociability came from, but seeing Namgung Su-ah like this, he figured it must be genetic.
‘I don’t think it’s from my father-in-law’s side… Was my mother-in-law very sociable?’
While Seo-jun was pondering this, the other members of the group also decided on their destinations and scattered.
Namgung Myeong left to meet his friends in Henan, and Pae Jin-gwang also went to see acquaintances he hadn't seen in a while. Namgung Hyeok seemed to want to tag along with Namgung Su-ah, but Pae Jin-gwang grabbed him by the collar and dragged him away, bluntly stating that an old man tagging along on a date would be considered incredibly tactless.
The country-bumpkin bandit Jang-geuk disappeared gleefully into the city with a pouch of money Seo-jun had handed him to go play. The martial artists under the Namgung Clan seemed to be acting on their own schedule, dividing into a group to guard the villa and a group to take a short rest.
Excited at the thought of the trio acting together for the first time in a while, Seo-jun scooped Chun-bong up in his arms and ran down the street.
"Let’s go, Geum Chun-bong…!"
"Let’s go!"
"Yahoo!"
At least, that was the mood until a dagger came flying at them with the sudden, sharp sound of wind.