Ak Nan-hyang
How long had it been since he last felt this way?
So thought Sangguan Yeonhwi, the Asura Pavilion Master.
Should he call it flustered? Yes, that seemed about right. Sangguan Yeonhwi was flustered.
He had no choice but to be.
The place where he now sat was Jangan Commandery — the same Jangan Commandery that had become the newest territory under Asura Sword Sect's dominion.
He had ordered Dongpo pork and Jukyeocheong rice wine at a nearby inn.
"My, such an honored guest... coming to visit our humble inn... This is a dish our head cook prepared specially. Please, have a taste. There will be no charge."
Sangguan Yeonhwi shook his head, drew two silver ingots from his robe, and pressed them into the innkeeper's hands.
"Wha—... truly, there's no need, sir. Please, keep it."
"Enough. Take it."
Sangguan Yeonhwi was a decisive man. Faced with that fearsome visage, the innkeeper had no choice but to accept the silver. Bowing deeply, he soon withdrew.
Sangguan Yeonhwi gazed quietly at the spread before him. A plate of Dongpo pork, the Jukyeocheong wine, and yuxiang shredded pork. It was too much food for one man.
That was right.
Alone.
Three days had already passed since Sangguan Yeonhwi arrived at Jangan Commandery. For three days, he had kept watch over the place by himself.
He continued his thoughts as he ate. Word that Great Elder Myo Man-ri had set out for Jangan Commandery had reached him long ago — yet when he arrived, no one was here. He had heard that the old man had gone off somewhere with one of the Sambong branch's members... Truly a difficult man to read.
And why had he come here in the first place? To meet Yi Do.
But Yi Do was gone too. The most important figure, the branch master himself, was absent. So was the branch member.
That was why Sangguan Yeonhwi could not easily leave.
And yet, his mood was not so poor.
For a sect to dominate a region meant exerting overwhelming influence over it. To achieve that, every soul in the region had to look up to the Asura Sword Sect — or fear it.
After all, respect was born of fear.
Despite the absence of the branch master at the heart of it all, the sect's influence remained as firm and unshaken as ever. Chaos? There was none. Even the government troops looked upon Yi Do favorably. He could state with certainty that even if Yi Do vanished for months, none of this influence would waver.
He was satisfied. No — he was in awe.
He had spent roughly a day of the last two inside the Jangan branch alone, and in that time, no fewer than several dozen people had voluntarily delivered goods of every description, calling them tribute payments. Even now, the branch's underground storerooms were piled with goods beyond counting.
One thing had to be made clear. These people had not come looking for 'Sangguan Yeonhwi.' They had come looking for Yi Do.
It astonished him.
He drained his cup of Jukyeocheong in one long pull. This was a man who drew admiration from him. Hearing tales from afar, he had honestly thought the man merely impressive — but seeing it with his own eyes, well... he found himself at a loss for words. The way Yi Do handled affairs was simply airtight.
That was when it happened.
The door of the Jinyeong Inn swung open. A man stepped inside, surveyed the room, and made his way toward Sangguan Yeonhwi.
Sangguan Yeonhwi looked up. His eyes met the man's. The man bowed with a fist-palm salute.
"It is an honor to meet the Asura Pavilion Master."
"Hmph... So this is how I come to meet the branch master of the famous 'Jangan Branch' at last."
There was a faint edge to the words, but Yi Do did not flinch from them.
"I apologize."
"So you won't be making excuses."
"No, sir. If you wish to punish me, I will accept it gladly."
He liked that about him, too. The man never offered a single excuse. When people err, they usually reach for justifications first — such-and-such happened, so I had no choice, please forgive me — that sort of thing.
But Yi Do was not that way. Beyond carrying himself with a clear conscience, when it came to genuine faults, he would always apologize first and accept his punishment without protest.
Punishment.
He intended to give one.
"Sit down, first. It's too much food for one man anyway."
Yi Do sat without a word of protest. Sangguan Yeonhwi slid the empty cup toward him and filled it with wine.
"Drink. That is your punishment."
Once again, without complaint, Yi Do drained the cup.
"A branch master rarely keeps an Asura Pavilion Master waiting, but I did arrive without so much as a word of notice, so the fault is largely mine. Let it pass."
"Yes, sir."
"But I find I simply cannot hold my tongue. Where in the world has the Great Elder gone, and why did you leave Jangan Commandery unattended for five days?"
Yi Do regarded the Pavilion Master for a moment. How much should he tell? The deliberation did not last long. Sect Master Dokgo Dan-ya and Sangguan Yeonhwi were very close. He didn't know how much the Sect Master had confided, but the Asura Pavilion Master deserved to know.
Yi Do told him everything, concealing nothing.
When the whole account was finished, Sangguan Yeonhwi blinked.
"...So you're saying... the Great Elder has gone to Geongon Fortress in Yeon State... and you went to Baekmun Town to treat this Myeong Hyeon...?"
"Yes."
The Pavilion Master lowered his voice. Apparently even that wasn't enough. An oppressive pressure settled around him.
"You mean to say you'll accept him, knowing he is a Yaksha?"
"From the day I first arrived at the Asura Sword Sect, Myeong Hyeon was already my man."
"...There is no telling what consequences this may bring down on us later."
"No one can predict the future. But there is one thing I can state with certainty."
"And what is that?"
"Myeong Hyeon's existence will one day save our Asura Sword Sect."
"...Save us? If the Imperial Sword Sect steps forward first and exposes the Yaksha's identity—"
"It won't matter. We can expose him ourselves."
"..."
"The justification will end up on our side either way."
"...I suppose so. But this... you're saying we'd be making an enemy of the Imperial Sword Sect."
Yi Do looked at Sangguan Yeonhwi steadily. He hid nothing.
"Do you consider the Imperial Sword Sect an ally?"
"..."
"They have already deployed their Yaksha. They have regarded the Asura Sword Sect as a potential enemy for a very long time. That is a fact no one can deny."
"Continue."
"Do you consider the Murim Alliance an ally, Pavilion Master?"
"...You..."
"The Imperial Sword Sect and the Murim Alliance are one and the same. Not necessarily every warrior under their banners — but at the very least, the Heavenly Emperor and the Sword Emperor are bound by deep affection. If one is endangered, the other will invariably step forward."
"...I understand well enough what you're driving at. So what do you intend to do about it?"
"It's simple. We grow our strength until neither the Murim Alliance nor the Imperial Sword Sect can afford to meddle with us."
"Grow our strength?"
"Our influence, to be precise. Before we set our sights on distant enemies, doesn't our Asura Sword Sect still have unfinished business of its own?"
Unfinished business.
On this point, neither Sangguan Yeonhwi nor any of the other elders could argue. Who was the true 'enemy' of the Asura Sword Sect? The Imperial Sword Sect and the Murim Alliance were enemies of the future — not enemies of the present.
By drawing the imperial family into the fold, Yi Do had severed both powers' approach entirely. No matter what happened, as things stood, neither the Imperial Sword Sect nor the Murim Alliance could make a move. Whatever justification they might drum up, that fact would not change. They were actors bound by the grand premise of walking the righteous path — and with the imperial throne now entangled in the affair, they absolutely could not stir.
Yi Do hadn't drawn in the Battle King on a whim. It had all been planned, calculated, and orchestrated.
The enemy of the present.
"Pacheon Fist Sect. Their schemes diseased the spirit of the Asura Sword Sect, and even at this very moment, they continue to gnaw away at that spirit, bit by bit."
"Mm..."
"I have already built a debt of enmity with the Pacheon Fist Sect. Such a debt can only end when one side or the other is broken — and I have no intention of breaking."
"You'll see it through to the end, then?"
"Yes."
The grave expression on the Asura Pavilion Master's face slowly loosened. A smile had formed at the corners of his mouth.
"The Sect Master says that you are the future of the Asura Sword Sect."
"Does he?"
"At first I didn't agree with him. But now I think I understand why he said it."
Sangguan Yeonhwi quietly filled Yi Do's cup once more.
"Do as you please. If you need support, speak up. I will help as far as my hand can reach."
"There is nothing I need at present."
At those words, Sangguan Yeonhwi burst out laughing. What an entertaining young man. Without another word, he drew a book from his robe and handed it over. When Yi Do asked with his eyes what it was, Sangguan Yeonhwi answered.
"The Dark Asura Heavenly Sword."
"...Pardon?"
A rare sight indeed — Yi Do caught off guard. Sangguan Yeonhwi's smile deepened.
"You know as well as I do — your circumstances are truly exceptional. The Great Elder brought you here personally, yet he never passed on the sect's martial arts to you."
That was true. Though Yi Do belonged to the Asura Sword Sect, he did not know a single one of its techniques. He had simply never been taught them.
"By rights, the Great Elder should have given you this... but honestly, none of us knew what to make of it either. Consider it a gift from the Sect Master himself."
Yi Do silently opened the manual and ran his eyes rapidly over its contents.
Then he closed it at once.
"...This seems far too generous a reward. This is the Sect Master's secret art, passed down to a single disciple. For me to learn it..."
"Worry not. The Sect Master says he will never seat you in the Young Sect Master's chair without your consent."
"..."
"Learn it. It will serve you well. And..."
Sangguan Yeonhwi's eyes gleamed sharp.
"...you've reached the Five Qi Toward Origin, haven't you?"
"I was fortunate."
"If fortune alone were enough, every warrior in the world would have reached the Five Qi Toward Origin by now. There's no need for false modesty."
After a moment's thought, Sangguan Yeonhwi drew out a pouch this time.
"Just in case, let me mention — I've left thirty Asura Pills at the Jangan branch. This one is a gift of my own."
Yi Do accepted the pouch and looked inside. No fewer than ten pills gleamed with a golden light.
"Asura Pills. And thirty-year-aged ones, at that."
"I trust you'll put them to good use."
"Thank you."
Yi Do did not refuse what was offered. Sangguan Yeonhwi continued.
"And there's an Embroidered Uniform Guard by the name of Eun Jinsan who asked me to pass along a message."
"I'm listening."
"He says to postpone your drinking engagement until later — something urgent has come up, and he's gone ahead to look into it."
Yi Do nodded.
"Then let us take our leave."
"Yes, sir."
"Ah — and take this as well."
Sangguan Yeonhwi carried a great deal on his person. His frame was so massive that the long robe he wore was enormous in turn, and the space within it was considerable. What he handed over this time was a tightly rolled bundle of papers.
"Word has it the imperial court intends to merge this Jangan Commandery with Sambong County into one. From our standpoint there's no need to maintain two branches in regions lying so close together — so from today, you will oversee both."
"Understood. Though — what are these papers?"
"A list of candidates the Asura Pavilion recommends for branch members."
"..."
"I know you'd rather choose them yourself, but the territory you must manage has grown. Two branch members is too few — that is my judgment. Though I suppose if you dislike it, there's nothing to be done."
The bundle was no one or two pages. There were dozens at the least.
"I won't force your hand, but at least give it some thought. If anyone strikes your fancy, send a letter to the main sect. We'll dispatch them at once."
"Thank you."
"Right. Off you go, then. Next time, we'll meet at the main sect."
"Travel safely, Pavilion Master."
Yi Do watched Sangguan Yeonhwi's retreating figure as the man stepped outside.
Despite the reasonably productive conversation they had just shared, Yi Do's expression was not bright. Quite the opposite — he was watching the man go with a gaze that had turned remarkably cold.
Yi Do remained in his seat for a long while. As though there were deep matters to weigh, he sat in silence — then slowly rose.
He had not reached a final conclusion on everything in his mind, but it was enough.
It was time to attend to the affairs of Jangan Commandery. This place would now become his new haven.
Leaving the inn, he headed straight for the Jangan branch. The moment he pushed open the door, his brow creased.
"Hello there."
There was an uninvited guest. A woman.
Ak Nan-hyang — the woman who would one day earn the epithet Blood Woman of Mount Wu — was waving a hand that held a folded iron fan segment.