The Asura Sword Sect
Yi Do's movements had thrown the entire Jangryeong Commandery into an uproar.
First, he had killed bandits, then murdered a manager of the Three Great Clans' inner circle, toppling the Yi Clan. Next, he had swallowed up Cheonhwaru whole, shaking the Jang Clan to its core.
And now, as if on schedule, the Hyeokli Clan had been thrown into chaos as well.
Hyeokli Wonpyeong, the head of the Hyeokli Clan, had two children.
One was the young clan head, Hyeokli Yang-geon; the other, his second son, Hyeokli Cheol-san.
Neither of them was young anymore. The eldest had turned twenty-six this year, and Cheol-san was one year his junior at twenty-five.
But their talent for the martial arts was separated by a gulf.
The eldest had only just reached the Circulation Realm. The second son had not.
Cheol-san had already entered Yang Gwang Yi Hyeon, the very threshold of the Four Realms of Qi Condensation.
And it was that second son, Hyeokli Cheol-san, who commanded the Gale Squad — an elite strike force assembled from the very best warriors of the Hyeokli Clan.
His voice brimming with fury, he demanded:
"...So what you're telling me... is that this Yi Do bastard did this to you — and then butchered two more members of the Gale Squad?"
"Hrk... yes... that man... he's a demon wearing human skin..."
"Enough. That will do. Don't strain yourself."
Hyeokli Cheol-san silently gestured to the other squad members.
The meaning was clear — carry Chwi Sam to the infirmary.
Then Cheol-san turned his head.
There stood Hyeokli Wonpyeong, head of the Hyeokli Clan, and the young clan head, Hyeokli Yang-geon.
Wonpyeong, his face carved deep with thought, addressed his son.
"What do you intend to do?"
"I intend to repay him in kind."
At Cheol-san's words, Wonpyeong let out a short breath.
"But that is the Yi Clan."
"I don't care."
"No — the Hyeokli Clan cares. The Yi Clan is in a state of turmoil right now. For us to act amid all that would be unwise."
"Clan Head... no, Father. How can you ask me, commander of the squad, to sit idle after one of our own was harmed?"
"Tsk. One careless move and this could spiral into all-out war. The Yi Clan is already reeling from the burning of their property. And now, if we strike at them? They could pin the whole thing on us — claim we were the ones behind it."
"But we weren't. Surely that much is obvious."
"Whether it's true or not, the people of Jangryeong Commandery may not see it that way. That is what I mean."
Hyeokli Wonpyeong's character was simple to describe.
Cautious. And cautious again.
He was the sort of man who, before crossing even a stone bridge, would knock on it twice — three times for good measure.
"Besides, from what I hear, this Yi Do fellow has monstrous talent for the martial arts."
"..."
"Seventeen years old and already at the Circulation Realm, they say. A concubine-born son or not, talent like that would guarantee him a seat of power in the Yi Clan. The moment you lay a hand on him, you give that clan one more reason never to sit still."
"But...!"
"Wait. The time is not yet ripe."
Hyeokli Yang-geon's position was much the same.
He placed a hand on his younger brother's shoulder.
"Brother, I understand how you feel, but there's nothing to be done. You have to hold it in — for now. Let's bide our time."
"...And what time, exactly, are you telling me to wait for?"
"The moment the Yi Clan starts to wobble."
"...I'm sorry?"
Yang-geon stole a glance at the clan head before continuing.
"Right now, the Yi Clan hasn't settled the matter of their young clan head. Now consider — what happens if the firstborn takes that seat?"
"The second son won't sit still."
"Exactly. I can't speak for this Yi Do fellow's ambitions, but the second son will certainly not stay quiet. And what about the reverse?"
"...If the second son becomes young clan head, the firstborn won't sit still either."
"Right. The Yi Clan is fated to shake, at the very least once more. We strike when it does."
Hyeokli Wonpyeong said nothing. Even by his careful reckoning, if they were to act at all, the right moment would come when the Yi Clan's turmoil deepened further. Not now — certainly not now.
"...Then both of you must promise me. When that time comes, you will act — no matter what."
It was Wonpyeong, the clan head, who answered.
"Yes. I so promise."
"That Yi Do bastard will die by my hand. I swear it."
"You will be capable of it. Your talent surpasses his, after all."
And so, every opinion had reached agreement.
Then it happened.
"Heh heh... it seems Jangryeong Commandery is about to become quite the lively place."
Even at a glance, it was an old man's voice.
All three men turned their heads at once — and at once, took up a formal fist salute.
"Great Hero, you've come."
No one in the Hyeokli Clan outranked the clan head.
There was a patriarch emeritus, but he was currently battling illness, too weak even to walk.
The old man called the Great Hero spoke.
"Debts of gratitude and grievance are the very foundation of the murim. What one suffers, one must repay — that is duty. Looking at your two sons now, I'd say they're destined to become remarkable men."
With his hands clasped behind his back and a hearty chuckle, the white-bearded old man looked perfectly ordinary — which meant he could not possibly be.
That man's name was Myo Man-li.
Bearing the epithet of the Flying Dragon Great Hero, he was an elder of the Asura Sword Sect, one of the Eight Great Sects.
"Great Hero, I say this again and again — we wish only to maintain good relations with the Asura Sword Sect."
"Heh heh heh. How could our Asura Sword Sect dislike men who walk the unorthodox path with such backbone? So long as you walk that road, we will walk it with you."
"We are grateful for your kind words."
And yet, even as he spoke, a trace of disappointment lingered beneath the gratitude.
Why, after all, would a man bearing the monstrous epithet of the Flying Dragon Great Hero come to the Hyeokli Clan of Jangryeong Commandery?
There was one glaringly obvious reason.
He was hunting for a disciple.
Myo Man-li had come after hearing word that the Hyeokli Clan's second son showed considerable promise.
And his assessment of Hyeokli Cheol-san's talent? Not bad — but not good enough to make him his own disciple.
That was all there was to it.
Had Cheol-san been accepted, the Hyeokli Clan would have gained the backing of the Asura Sword Sect, just as the Jang Clan had gained the backing of the Imperial Sword Sect.
It was a genuine shame.
Then Myo Man-li turned to Hyeokli Wonpyeong.
"By the way — I hear there's a warrior who reached the Circulation Realm at seventeen. Is that so?"
"..."
"Why so silent? Don't tell me you're reluctant to tell me, just because his clan rivals yours? My, my. And here I thought men who walked the unorthodox path had broader hearts than this."
"...It's nothing of the sort. I was merely considering where to begin."
"Heh heh heh heh. Is that so? Well, that's a relief. So — have you finished considering?"
"...Yes."
"Then let's hear it. Speak."
"...The warrior you speak of, Great Hero, is the concubine-born son of the Yi Clan — one of the Three Great Clans of Jangryeong."
Myo Man-li's expression shifted, ever so subtly.
"Hmm... a concubine-born son, you say..."
"Yes. From his earliest days, word had spread across the whole commandery that the boy was a dullard. I saw him with my own eyes more than once — head forever bowed, stammering so badly when he spoke that half the time you couldn't make out what he meant. And now, suddenly, that boy has become a warrior of the Circulation Realm. They say he beheaded a band of bandits, then cut down the Yi Clan's Chief Manager and a mere manager in a single stroke."
"Oh ho... he killed them? And the Yi Clan's head simply stood by and watched?"
"From what I hear, it was a matter of hierarchy. By killing the manager who dared steal what was his, and the Chief Manager who dared intrude on a conversation between father and son, he... established order. That is the outlandish rumor, in any case. I can't vouch for its truth."
Myo Man-li's reaction, however, was unexpected.
He actually broke into applause, as though something had delighted him.
"Now that, I like. That is the true unorthodox path. Where is he? I must meet this boy myself."
Just as Wonpyeong was about to give him directions to the Yi Clan estate —
the corner of Myo Man-li's mouth curled upward.
And without another word, he turned his body.
"No need, I think."
"...I beg your pardon?"
Perhaps those words were only to be expected.
Following Myo Man-li's gaze, the three men of the Hyeokli Clan turned their eyes as well.
And they saw.
A single man, walking slowly toward the gates of the Hyeokli Clan estate.
It was Yi Do.
Yi Do, at this very moment — brazen and utterly alone — had come calling on the Hyeokli Clan.
Hyeokli Cheol-san flared his qi, looking ready to cut the man down on the spot, but a raised hand from Myo Man-li stopped him cold.
Heh heh heh.
"I do so like the way this boy moves."
Affection brimmed in Myo Man-li's voice.
As if.
As if he intended to take him for a disciple.
The moment I laid eyes on him, my brow furrowed hard.
Why in the world was that mad old man here?
The Flying Dragon Great Hero, Myo Man-li.
There was no possibility that I didn't know that man.
One of the Asura Sword Sect's Eight Great Elders — and holder of the seat of Grand Elder besides.
The Asura Sword Sect had no concept of a vice-sect-master.
There was the Sect Master, and beneath him, the Grand Elder. Nothing more.
Which meant he was the second-ranked master of the Asura Sword Sect — an expert among experts.
His strength, at least, I could acknowledge. But far more noteworthy was his character.
Don't be absurd — an epithet like the Flying Dragon Great Hero didn't make a man chivalrous and noble.
This was a man of the Asura Sword Sect, of all places — a sect infamous for walking the unorthodox path — and people called him a Great Hero? That alone should have made anyone question what lay beneath.
The man I knew was, without question, no one who deserved to be called a Great Hero.
And the way he was looking at me now — eyes brimming with warm affection — was deeply, deeply unsettling. I simply ignored it.
"It has been a while, Clan Head Hyeokli."
At my courteous fist salute, Hyeokli Wonpyeong replied curtly, his expression sour.
"So it has. I'd just finished hearing the reports, as it happens... Did it truly have to come to that?"
"I'm sorry to say it, but the Golden Inn is under my protection. Whether it's the shopkeeper or the cook, whoever works there — my word to look after the place means my word to protect them. And I keep my word."
I did not wither. I said what needed saying, standing tall.
"You've heard the reports, so you already know. There was no other way."
Then it happened.
A man trembling from head to toe, fists clenched white, shouted as though he might lunge at me where I stood.
"You wretch! Is that something a human being says?! How can you kill men so easily — shatter their dantians! A warning alone would have been more than enough—"
"That was the warning."
"...What?"
"I spared as many as one man alive, didn't I? I extended that much mercy, and you have the gall to be angry with me?"
"You... you bastard... I'll kill you right here and now—"
"Enough! Stand down!"
At Hyeokli Wonpyeong's shout, Hyeokli Cheol-san flinched.
"That is quite enough. Did I not tell you before? Must I say the same thing twice before it sinks in?"
"...Clan Head..."
"Enough. Cheol-san, go and see to that Chwi Sam fellow."
Hyeokli Cheol-san, grinding his teeth, shot me one last glare before turning on his heel.
As I watched his back recede, Hyeokli Wonpyeong spoke to me.
"Such a reaction was only natural. I trust you will understand that."
"I understand it fully. A subordinate's failings are, in the end, his superior's failings as well. How bitter it must be for you."
Whether my every word was scraping at his pride or not, this time it was the young clan head, Hyeokli Yang-geon, whose fists clenched tight.
Naturally, I ignored him.
Hyeokli Wonpyeong let out a long sigh.
"...So. Why have you come?"
Why had I come?
The reason could not have been clearer.
"To collect for repairs."
At those words, father and son of the Hyeokli Clan blinked, utterly dumbfounded.
"Repairs... repair costs?"
"Yes. The walls and doors of the Golden Inn were damaged in the incident just now. All of it happened because of the senseless conduct of the Hyeokli Clan's warriors — so naturally, the repair costs are properly billed to this clan. Is that not right?"
"...What kind of nonsense is—"
"Do you truly think it nonsense?"
Hyeokli Wonpyeong's mouth snapped shut. In the famously cautious eyes of the man, a killing light kindled.
"What is that supposed to mean."
"...I'd heard there was sudden progress in your household. But this is stretching things rather far, isn't it?"
"And why exactly do you consider this stretching things? I don't care for escalating matters either. So I'll be direct. The total repair cost comes to sixty nyang and three yang of silver. You may either reimburse me for repairs I cover out of my own pocket — with interest added afterward — or hand me the six hundred three nyang this instant. Which would you prefer?"
"...You. Are you really Yi Do?"
I laughed.
"Then who do I look like to you?"
"...You're like a different person entirely. That boy who couldn't even meet my eyes as a child — to think he'd change this much. It's as if the very person has been replaced. Could it be..."
"If the next words are 'possessed by a demon' — no, they are not. I am Yi Do, and I have come to collect money. So what will it be?"
Hyeokli Wonpyeong first pressed a hand onto the shoulder of the young clan head beside him, who looked ready to fly into a fit.
His mouth opened.
"Take your absurd extortion elsewhere. We will not be paying you any—"
Before his words could finish, Myo Man-li cut in.
"You know, Clan Head Hyeokli."
"...Yes, Great Hero?"
"The way I see it, paying the boy is the correct thing to do."
"...How can you say such a thing? You know full well this is extortion."
"Extortion? That is precisely the unorthodox path, is it not? What you are owed, you collect — no matter what stands in your way. Isn't that gall of his magnificent?"
"..."
"Heh heh heh. I simply can't let this pass. If the Clan Head objects, well — nothing to be done about that."
Myo Man-li approached me and drew a pouch from inside his robe.
"Here — roughly a thousand nyang of silver inside. I'll cover this repair cost of yours myself, so how about you let that anger of yours go?"
The Flying Dragon Great Hero, Myo Man-li.
I knew.
I knew exactly what this man would go on to do in the future.
Under the pretext of saving a disciple, he would storm the Imperial Palace, sweep away everyone within its walls, and abduct the Imperial Princess.
Up to that point, one might have grudgingly shrugged it off.
But he would rape the princess by force, then teach his martial arts to the child born of her.
He never said it aloud, but up until my death in this era, only three men in the entire murim bore, simultaneously, a spot on the martial records and the name of Arch-Demon.
One of those three stood before me now — Myo Man-li.
And.
He also had a record of violating men.
Myo Man-li grinned.
"You. I truly do like you."