Chapter 221: Evil-Annihilating Heavenly Lord (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 221: Evil-Annihilating Heavenly Lord (3)
Chun-bong, who had asked for a moment of his time, walked ahead in silence. Seo-jun followed.
They came to a halt in the middle of a wide, open courtyard.
Chun-bong turned to face him, her expression stiff and rigid.
“…Oppa.”
“Yeah?”
Chun-bong pursed her lips before letting out a deep sigh.
“Are… are you okay?”
“What do you mean, am I okay?”
“Do you think I was born yesterday?”
Chun-bong stomped over and reached out, pressing both hands against Seo-jun’s cheeks and pulling his face down toward hers.
Her wide, sparkling eyes were mere inches from his nose.
“Fix your face. You’ve been giving off such a sharp, murderous aura lately.”
“…Is it making people uncomfortable?”
“I don’t give a damn about that.”
Chun-bong pressed her forehead against his.
“Smile.”
“Right now?”
“Dammit, I said smile, so smile.”
Since she told him to smile, he did. As he pulled the corners of his mouth up into a forced grin, Chun-bong let out a sharp huff of breath.
“Good job.”
“What’s this all about?”
“Don’t let your emotions consume you. I’m giving you advice as someone who’s been there.”
Seo-jun’s mouth clamped shut. Advice from someone who had been through it—it was a heavy topic to broach.
“I know it’s hard. You act like you don’t care, but you’re actually full of affection.”
“Am I?”
“You are. You followed the Family Head well, too.”
Pat, pat. Chun-bong tapped Seo-jun’s cheeks, then squeezed them so hard his lips puckered like a goldfish.
“Don’t suffer alone until you make yourself sick. If things get too hard, come to me.”
“Okay… Giga Chun-bong.”
“Seo-bbit-bbi, if you don’t want to die, don’t spout nonsense at a time like this.”
“I got it.”
Seo-jun let out a short laugh. Mwah. Chun-bong planted a quick kiss on his lips.
“Now that you understand, go to the Young Lady. She’s having a hard time, so stay by her side.”
“I will.”
She could be so mature sometimes. Seo-jun reached out and ruffled Chun-bong’s hair into a messy bird's nest.
With her hair completely ruined, Chun-bong slapped Seo-jun’s butt twice.
“I’m going to sleep.”
“Yeah.”
Seo-jun watched Chun-bong’s retreating back. His complicated heart felt just a little lighter.
‘I’m glad.’
Glad that there was someone to ground him.
Because Chun-bong was here, he could focus solely on moving forward.
A faint smile spread across Seo-jun’s lips.
* * *
Sunlight filtered through his eyelids.
Seo-jun opened his eyes, immediately locking gazes with someone who had been staring intently at him from mere inches away.
“Are you awake?”
When Seo-jun smiled, Namgung Su-ah offered a faint smile in return.
“…Yes.”
It wasn’t a bright smile. Namgung Su-ah forced herself to stand up.
“This isn’t the time for me to be resting…”
Following Namgung Jin-cheon’s death, the entire clan was in a frantic state of motion.
As a direct descendant of the Namgung, Su-ah also had much to do.
“Don’t worry about it.”
Seo-jun stood up and picked up Namgung Jin-cheon’s sword from the table.
After aligning the pieces of the snapped blade, he lightly brushed his finger over the fracture.
The metal fused back together, becoming as smooth and flawless as if it were brand new.
Seo-jun slid the sword back into its scabbard and approached Namgung Su-ah. Wuuuung— The sword emitted a clear resonance.
‘It was a sword used by a man who was close to a god.’
It wouldn't be strange if some mysterious power had taken root within the blade itself.
Seo-jun handed the sword to Namgung Su-ah. As she accepted it, the blade hummed again, as if in delight.
“You don’t need to worry about the clan or what comes next.”
“…Still. Everyone is so busy, I can’t just sit around like this.”
“Hmm…”
True, keeping busy wasn't a bad thing. When the heart was heavy, moving the body could sometimes provide a breath of fresh air.
After a moment of thought, Seo-jun took her hand and led her outside.
“Then shall we go see Myeong-i?”
“Ah…”
Namgung Su-ah blinked blankly before nodding.
“…Let’s do that.”
* * *
The authority of a Family Head of the Sixteen Major Sects and Clans was as vast as the heavens.
That lofty authority was equal to, if not greater than, that of the mortal emperor.
Naturally, their funerals were held with the utmost solemnity.
There was much to prepare, and Namgung Myeong, the newly appointed Family Head, was buried in work.
Fortunately, the clan elders were assisting him, giving him at least a little room to process his grief.
“Brother, Sister.”
Namgung Myeong, dressed in white mourning clothes, greeted Seo-jun and Namgung Su-ah.
Only a day had passed, but his eyes were already sunken and dark.
A martial artist of Namgung Myeong’s caliber wouldn't end up in such a state just from physical exhaustion. It was the crushing weight on his heart.
Seo-jun gave a bitter smile and patted Namgung Myeong’s shoulder.
“You’re working hard.”
“No. It is only what I must do.”
Glancing at Namgung Myeong’s desk, Seo-jun saw towering piles of documents. They mostly looked like letters to be sent to prospective mourners.
Seo-jun looked back and forth between Namgung Su-ah and Namgung Myeong before asking, “Is there anything I can help with? I’m not great with paperwork, but I’m confident in anything involving physical labor.”
“It’s fine for now. However…”
Namgung Myeong glanced at the letters on his desk.
“Once the mourners start arriving, trouble might break out.”
The Namgung Clan was an undisputed pillar of the Sixteen Major Sects and Clans. Or at least, that was true while Namgung Jin-cheon was alive.
However, the current Namgung Clan had no master in the Transcendent Realm.
The masters of the previous generation had long gone into seclusion and disappeared, and the only martial artist close to the Transcendent Realm was Namgung Hyeok.
While their strength below that level was formidable even compared to other major sects, a faction's true status was ultimately determined by the existence of a peak master.
Seo-jun and Pae Jin-gwang were present, but they were ultimately outsiders. No matter how the Namgung viewed them, that was how they appeared to the rest of the world.
The jackals who had been biding their time while Namgung Jin-cheon was alive might now bare their teeth.
‘No, they definitely will.’
That was just how the martial world worked. Namgung Myeong smiled bitterly.
“When that happens, I will have to shamelessly ask for your help.”
“What do you mean, shamelessly? It’s only natural. And perhaps, it might actually be a good thing.”
At Seo-jun’s words, Namgung Myeong looked up at him.
“A good thing?”
“We’ll be able to distinguish them clearly.”
Friends and foes.
It was an extreme way of thinking, but drawing a clear line was actually easier on the mind.
“We’ll watch, and when we’ve seen enough, we can cut them all down.”
Seo-jun’s eyes held a strange light. A vicious red glow flickered in his gaze.
Catching a glimpse of that blood-scented aura, Namgung Myeong swallowed hard.
Seo-jun continued.
“Anyone who might harm the Namgung—we must crush them at the root.”
“Does that mean…?”
“Remember those who try to climb over us. You don’t need their names, just their sects.”
“Wouldn’t that be a bit excessive…?”
Seo-jun’s implication was clear: he would annihilate their entire sects.
No matter how powerful the Namgung Clan was, they couldn't avoid the massive backlash from the rest of the Murim if they did something like that.
“Is it?”
Seo-jun scratched his chin.
“Then just pick out the ones who seem suspicious.”
Baek Seo-jun could handle the cleanup.
There would be no need to tarnish the Namgung Clan’s name.
* * *
Namgung Su-ah remained in the office to help Namgung Myeong.
Seo-jun wanted to look after her a bit more, but… he had work to do.
‘I should at least clean up the Sword Sect before the funeral.’
That was the absolute minimum respect Seo-jun could show his father-in-law.
Seo-jun left the clan and headed toward Hebei. Specifically, he made for the Murim Alliance located north of the Yellow River, right on the border of Henan and Hebei.
Without a word, he tore right through the Murim Alliance’s barrier arrays and headed straight for the meeting hall deep inside.
When he threw the doors open without warning, he spotted the Chief Tactician, Jegal Tong.
Unlike before, there were almost no elders present. Only a few people were conversing with Jegal Tong.
“You are…”
A middle-aged man’s expression shifted strangely. Jegal Tong gave a bitter smile and gestured toward Seo-jun.
“You may sit here.”
Seo-jun sat down in silence. The middle-aged man looked back and forth between Seo-jun and Jegal Tong before asking, “Jin Gi-jae-cheon?”
Jegal Tong nodded.
“That is correct, Elder Peng.”
“I thought so. I’ve heard much about you. I am Peng Chu-san.”
Peng Chu-san grinned. Seo-jun merely stared at him blankly.
Jegal Tong introduced him with an awkward smile.
“He is not an elder of the Murim Alliance, but he provides much help while traveling between the Peng Clan and the Alliance.”
The Hebei Peng Clan. A prominent member of the Sixteen Major Sects and Clans.
Seo-jun furrowed his brow and tapped the table irritably before finally speaking.
“Elder of the Namgung, Baek Seo-jun.”
He wondered what meaning the Murim Alliance or the Righteous Faction actually held anymore.
When the Geum Family was annihilated, and when Namgung Jin-cheon fell into a trap, those grandiose titles ultimately meant nothing.
Seo-jun clicked his tongue openly and asked Jegal Tong, “I assume you’ve heard the news from the front lines.”
“Yes. I heard that Elder Baek provided great assistance on the battlefields near the Giryeon Sect and the Sword Sect.”
“I didn’t come here for any special reason.”
Seo-jun’s eyes, tinged with a bloody red, pierced right through Jegal Tong. The chilling sensation made the Chief Tactician swallow hard.
“As the Chief Tactician of the Murim Alliance, I assume you have a deeper understanding of strategy and tactics than I do.”
It burned Seo-jun that he had been outmaneuvered by Sa-ma, but Jegal Tong was still the Chief Tactician of the Murim Alliance.
He would be far better at playing the board than Seo-jun himself. If he could help crush the Black Lotus Union, there was no reason not to seek his opinion.
Under Seo-jun’s intense gaze, Jegal Tong tried to steady his breathing before speaking.
“Actually… if the martial artists of the Transcendent Realm truly step forward, the entire aspect of the war will change from what it is now.”
“Are you saying they haven't truly stepped forward yet?”
“In a sense, yes. If they truly commit, it becomes a war from which there is no turning back.”
The Transcendents near the front lines held their positions to keep the enemy’s Transcendents in check, while those in the rear provided support and protected their own sects.
This had been the pattern of the war so far.
“However, if the war intensifies… the Transcendents in the rear will begin to move more actively.”
No matter how grand the names 'Murim Alliance' or 'Black Lotus Union' sounded, their own sects were ultimately the most important thing to these martial artists.
For that reason, Transcendent martial artists rarely left their posts.
However, the story was a bit different for those in the rear, who were relatively free from such pressure.
“Since an enemy Transcendent rarely penetrates deep into friendly territory, the Transcendents of sects located in the rear can lend their strength to the front lines.”
That was also why Seo-jun had been able to leave the Namgung Clan. Unless they were completely insane, no Transcendent martial artist of the enemy would crawl all the way into Anhui.
“Let’s get to the point. Are you saying the Black Lotus Union’s Transcendents are about to start crawling out?”
“That… is not certain.”
Seo-jun frowned. Jegal Tong quickly continued.
“They have already lost four Transcendents. If they are sane, they should focus on defense, but…”
He couldn't be sure. Jegal Tong finally admitted it.
Sa-ma was always one step ahead of him.
“In fact, if the Namgung Family Head hadn't achieved such a feat this time, the Righteous Faction might have collapsed entirely.”
“……”
Seo-jun closed his eyes in silence.
Though he didn't show any outward signs of anger, the air inside the meeting hall grew impossibly heavy, pressing down on everyone’s shoulders like a physical weight.
“Just tell me where to hit if I want to annihilate the Sword Sect.”
“Of course.”
Jegal Tong spent a long time explaining the overall strategy.
After listening to the plan, Seo-jun nodded. It seemed like a suitable move to cripple the Sword Sect’s power.
“Then I’ll do that.”
Even if the plan went awry, he could just force it back into place with sheer, overwhelming power.
Seo-jun turned and left the Murim Alliance.
* * *
For the next few days, rumors about a certain man constantly echoed across the battlefield.
It was the story of a master running rampant, crazed for the blood of the Evil Sect's martial artists.
With a single gesture, dozens or even hundreds of martial artists were turned into piles of gore. Those who died were left in such a mangled state that their numbers couldn't even be accurately counted.
“He’s a monster…! A demon crazed for blood…!”
Since all martial artists—friend and foe alike—spoke of him with absolute terror, he was bestowed a new title: the Evil-Annihilating Heavenly Lord (滅邪天君).
The Heavenly Lord who annihilates evil.