The Eve of the Storm

My first thought was: not bad.

In my past life, when I first met him, I had crossed blades with him once.

At the time, a rumor claimed I had learned demonic arts, and I was in the middle of a war against Cheonjeong Gate. Gwak Jeong, who had exchanged exactly three offensive and defensive exchanges with me, said this:

'You have not learned demonic arts.'

Certain now that the rumor was false, he extended his hand to me, just as he was doing now.

It had been a good duel.

Your sword and fists are truly fierce — I think we could become good friends, he'd said.

And one month later, Gwak Jeong was dead.

His realm back then had been Entering Divinity.

It would be roughly thirteen years from now.

The circumstances were similar.

I took his hand.

"You need not worry about the Green Forest. Honestly, this is a matter for the Green Forest Alliance — we will handle it ourselves."

"I haven't lived long enough to spit on goodwill. If there's anything you need help with, send word to Jang'am Commandery."

Gwak Jeong beamed.

"My thanks merely for the offer. Haha."

He lowered his hand.

Then, as if a thought had just struck him, he asked.

"By the way — why did you speak to me so casually from the start?"

"Does it bother you?"

"It's not that it bothers me, it's just strange. Have we perhaps met somewhere before?"

"I doubt it."

"Then why does it feel so natural, I wonder. Clearly I'm the elder of the two of us..."

I snorted a laugh and clapped him on the shoulder.

"Endure it well. And don't forget my words."

What I meant by ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠don't forget, of course, was that I would help him if the need arose.

Gwak Jeong laughed.

"Understood. We will see to it that this place is settled."

"My debts keep piling up."

Gwak Jeong's gaze drifted toward my right arm.

"You've been worn down by the demons of the Green Forest Alliance. As a member of the Alliance, I'm merely doing what I'm duty-bound to do."

He was sharp. He knew my right arm was not in its normal state. I let it be. Either tomorrow or the day after, it would heal completely anyway.

I set off on my way. Un Dohyeon and Myeong Hyeon fell in behind me, and Un Dohyeon asked.

"Were you seeking to prevent the conflict from spreading to all Five Great Clans?"

I shook my head.

Even if war broke out tomorrow with all Five Great Clans at once, I would not run from it. The reason I took Gwak Jeong's hand was because of his boldness and his character.

A man who understood the ways of the murim and strove never to do anything that would shame himself.

The Gwak Jeong I knew was that kind of man.

I hadn't shaken hands with the Five Great Clans. I had shaken hands with Gwak Jeong, one man.

I had said let us be friends, and that much hadn't been a bad deal.

That was enough.

This time it was Myeong Hyeon who spoke up.

"But isn't this more serious than it looks?"

"Which part are you talking about?"

"The Green Forest using demonic arts — I can't make sense of it. Cho Ryong-pung isn't the Green Forest Chief Bandit, but he's unquestionably a confidant of the Bandit King — the Green Forest King, in other words. The martial artist the Green Forest King trusts most. If a man like Cho Ryong-pung uses demonic arts, then shouldn't we assume the Green Forest King does as well?"

"In all likelihood, yes."

"...I've got a real bad feeling right now."

I gazed at Myeong Hyeon in silence. I could easily guess what was running through his mind.

He was thinking about war.

The murim had known far too much peace of late.

It was time to shift the balance — time for those who had kept their heads bowed to start moving.

All of this was groundwork.

"Don't worry. We have ample time to prepare."

At those words, Myeong Hyeon and Un Dohyeon both smiled.

Loyalty is a fine thing indeed.

And so we returned to Jang'am Commandery.

Deep in the night, Myeong Mu-seong, Grand Elder of the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect, was climbing a mountain.

A man approached him.

Neat in appearance, with a hulking, rock-solid frame.

Both his fists were covered in thick calluses. Even at a glance, his presence was unmistakably that of at least the Five Qi Gathering realm.

He smiled brightly.

"You look to be in fine spirits, I see."

Myeong Mu-seong nodded as he spoke.

"To think the Young Sect Master would come out to greet me himself. The night is cold. Go on inside."

"Haha, did you not know? I am a great man, you see. Cold weather or hot, it makes no difference to me."

Myeong Mu-seong's remark had not been idle.

The Iron Lion Fist, Song Ja-myeong.

Even at this dead hour of night, he wore no outer garment. The two nipples that jutted from his rugged chest were quite a sight to behold.

Song Ja-myeong fell in beside Myeong Mu-seong, and the two began walking together.

"It seems Elder Han has many grievances with the Fist Sect."

"Does he?"

"The dispatch that arrived was completely blank. And now two hundred corpses have been discovered near Jang'am Commandery... Hm. I can't make heads or tails of it. What do you think?"

As if there were nothing to consider, Myeong Mu-seong answered.

"That he has broken away from the column is certain. But as you say, Young Sect Master, his grievances must run deep. He took offense at the Sect's conduct in blocking his disciple's vengeance — no doubt he's holed up somewhere in the mountains even now, sorting through his thoughts."

"When do you expect him to return?"

"You need not worry. He will return without fail, and soon."

Neither of them — no, to be precise, not a single soul in the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect — entertained the thought that Elder Han Beom-seong might be dead.

There was no reason for him to die.

However strong the Cruel Demon Dao Yi Do might be, he was at best at the threshold of the Five Qi Gathering realm, while Han Beom-seong was a master among masters who had ascended to the Realm of Harmony a full fourteen years ago. Even in defeat, Han Beom-seong should have at the very least torn the Cruel Demon Dao limb from limb. Yet according to every report arriving, the Cruel Demon Dao was alive and moving with all four limbs intact.

This was also proof that he had never fought Han Beom-seong at all. At least, that was how they judged it.

Song Ja-myeong asked.

"Did your errand go well?"

Myeong Mu-seong smiled faintly.

"Yes. It went exceedingly well."

Both of Song Ja-myeong's eyes gleamed.

"Then at last... it begins?"

"Yes. The war between the Asura Sword Sect and the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect has dragged on far too long."

"Hm."

"It is time to settle it once and for all. Remove the single most 'vexing obstacle,' and victory will surely pass into our hands."

Myeong Mu-seong stopped walking and turned his head. The night sky was glowing bright.

"Ten days. Within that time, the Asura Sword Sect will cease to exist."

Song Ja-myeong laughed.

Myeong Mu-seong laughed too.

Three days had passed.

My arm had fully healed, and my refined qi was filled to the brim.

Myeong Hyeon had recovered his Five Qi Gathering strength, and Un Dohyeon had restored every ounce of his Three Harmonies Convergence.

Curious about what had happened at Chilhyeon Mountain, I made a few inquiries, and from what I heard, the Green Forest Alliance was slaughtering the Green Forest bandits without mercy.

Jang'am Commandery was at peace.

But I did not imagine this peace would last long.

And then, today.

As if on cue, Jang Sangbo and Cheon Chung-myeon stepped into the Jang'am branch.

Their expressions looked gravely serious, and my curiosity sharpened — because those two had not come alone.

"What brings you all together like this?"

At my question, another man standing beside the two of them removed his black hat.

An exceedingly familiar face.

Ak Wi-cheon of Cheonrim.

"It worked out that way. This is the first time since then, isn't it."

"It is."

"I see."

Ak Wi-cheon handed me two large bundles.

When I opened them, I found each held a considerable sum of gold coins and twenty stalks of hundred-year ginseng.

"The profits we spoke of back then, and the hundred-year ginseng I promised."

A smile spread across my face.

The beginning had been rocky, but this much was more than satisfying.

"I look forward to continued dealings."

Ak Wi-cheon shrugged. At that, as if they'd been waiting for the opening, Cheon Chung-myeon and Jang Sangbo cut in.

"Yi Do-nim, we have something urgent to tell you—"

"There is truly urgent information I must deliver—"

Mid-sentence, the two men glared daggers at each other.

Watching them both, Ak Wi-cheon stepped forward.

"Just let me say it."

Their gazes turned to Ak Wi-cheon. He ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠spoke.

"You are surely not ignorant of the Asura Sword Sect's current situation. Last evening, our Cheonrim obtained a piece of intelligence."

"Information?"

"The internal fracturing of the Asura Sword Sect is hardly a great secret. There is no one who doesn't know. The elders' factions run deep, and with the Sect Master and the Grand Elder having entered seclusion one after the other, no one has had the leisure to mind the interior. Still, vaguely suspecting something and knowing it for certain are different matters. I'll state it plainly: it would be no exaggeration to say the Asura Sword Sect has already split in half. In such circumstances, men with other designs are bound to appear."

He crossed his legs. Ak Wi-cheon continued.

"At least two elders appear to have defected to the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect."

"Two?"

"The Asura Sword Sect has eight elders in total. The Grand Elder Myo Man-li, then Cho Dong, Neung Don, Dang Seo-han, Su Jin-hon, Seo Ja-ryang, Jeon Wi, and Yeong So-pyeong. Of these, Jeon Wi and Yeong So-pyeong met with Myeong Mu-seong, the Grand Elder of the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect, and exchanged words in secret."

"Do you have proof?"

Ak Wi-cheon glanced sidelong at Cheon Chung-myeon beside him.

Cheon Chung-myeon picked up where he left off.

"...They did not exchange their words aloud, but through written correspondence, so traces of it remained below. We rubbed a thinner graphite over the impressions to recover the contents... but before I tell you, there is one thing I wish to make absolutely clear. This intelligence is one of the most closely guarded secrets of the Hao Gate, and must never be made public under any circumstances. So I beg you — never tell a soul it came from me."

"Don't worry. I have at least that much tact."

I extended my hand. As if he'd been waiting for it, Cheon Chung-myeon handed me a wad of papers.

I drew them out one by one and read.

Some were ambiguous, but others were unmistakable.

I handed the papers I had read to the two men behind me, telling them to read for themselves.

I could see Cheon Chung-myeon's grave expression, and Ak Wi-cheon's matching one.

I did not doubt the capabilities of the Hao Gate.

Nor did I doubt the intelligence network of Cheonrim.

I turned my head. Jang Sangbo, whose eyes met mine, spoke as if he'd been waiting.

"The source of this intelligence is certain. Our Cheonjeong Gate informants personally confirmed those two elders entering a Cheonrim branch office."

Three separate intelligence organizations had brought me the same information.

All three of these men had reason to curry favor with me.

For now, this correspondence was surely genuine.

Handwriting analysis and the like were pointless. After all, this was never leaving the room.

"Jang Sangbo. Cheon Chung-myeon."

The two men raised their heads.

"Thank you. I am in your debt."

The two men smiled.

"I need time to sort things out. Your rewards will come later, and handsomely."

With that, the two men withdrew.

Only Ak Wi-cheon remained.

His expression was serious. He looked like a man with something he wanted to hear. I had a fair idea what it was.

I held out my hand behind me. Un Dohyeon, who had organized the papers, placed them neatly into my palm. I bundled them together and set them down on the table.

"The Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect is playing games, I see."

"...Oh ho...?"

"Jeon Wi and Yeong So-pyeong — do those two fools even know they're being used?"

"That much, I couldn't say."

"What a spectacle."

"..."

"And it can't be ruled out that this whole thing is a trap. I'm grateful for the information, but it isn't the kind I can act on immediately."

At my words, Ak Wi-cheon studied me with an odd look in his eyes.

"...I took you for a man who couldn't master his own temper and would die before his time, but now I see you have remarkable insight."

"Did you come here to appraise me?"

"Less an appraisal than a confirmation."

"And? Did you get it?"

"I did. Men who charge about as recklessly as you usually come to a bad end... but you, I suspect, will not. To reach the Five Qi Gathering realm at your age, above all else — I want to keep a good relationship going forward. Is there anything you desire?"

This was how it usually went, once a man acquired power.

People came crawling out of the woodwork to line up behind him.

Some offered information, some offered money — it took every shape.

But swallowing everything indiscriminately invites sickness. One must pick and choose, and Cheonrim was worth the eating.

And I—

I brought up something completely out of the blue.

"I need every scrap of information there is on Sangguan Yeonhwi, the Asura Pavilion Master."

Whether it was beyond his expectations or not, Ak Wi-cheon's eyes went wide.

"...You're asking for intelligence on the Asura Pavilion Master, of all people?"

"I have no interest in the basics. That much I can hear from my own subordinates here. I need the tightly guarded secrets that even these two don't know."

"...Truly, I can't begin to guess what you're planning. Very w—"

He was clearly about to say very well.

I shot out my hand and seized Ak Wi-cheon by the shoulder.

"Ak Wi-cheon."

"...What's gotten into you all of a sudden?"

"I do not hand out trust lightly."

"..."

"You and I are not old acquaintances. You are nothing more than a business partner bound to me by money. And yet, right now, I am offering you the chance to build trust with me that will hold firm."

"...What's your actual point?"

"Simple. What I asked you for must be known to as few people as possible. Unknown to anyone in Cheonrim — you alone must dig it out. Can you do that?"

"You'd prefer it doesn't reach Sangguan Yeonhwi's ears?"

"He's the man who runs an organization called the Asura Pavilion, and his eyes and ears must be planted everywhere in the world. I'd prefer you avoid that if you can, but I don't particularly care if you can't."

"I don't understand. It's intelligence on the Asura Pavilion Master, and yet... you seem to be looking somewhere else entirely. Who exactly are you aiming at?"

It was a good thing he was so quick on the uptake.

I kept it brief.

"Even if it takes a long time, I don't care. Do you understand what I mean?"

A peculiar smile spread across Ak Wi-cheon's face.

"...The more I learn of you, the stranger a man you are. Fine. I'll dig it up alone."

I'd said it before — Ak Wi-cheon was a man who honored his debts and his grudges without fail.

Lowering my hand, I tossed out the rest.

"Move Sambong-hyeon's black market to Jang'am Commandery. This place is about to become the center of everything."

"...Oh ho?"

"And I will reduce the profit share from ten parts to one."

Ak Wi-cheon snorted a laugh.

"And the number of hundred-year ginseng stalks sent each month?"

"You want them reduced too? Your greed is getting excessive."

"I jest, I jest."

Ak Wi-cheon rose from his seat.

"I'll find out as much as I can, as fast as I can. With this, may I assume the ties between my Cheonrim and you have deepened further?"

I shook my head.

"Strictly speaking, it's the relationship between you and me that has deepened. Not Cheonrim's."

"I like that even better. I'll bring you news before long."

Ak Wi-cheon turned on his heel and left.

It was quiet.

Myeong Hyeon and Un Dohyeon had not asked me a single question.

They were simply waiting for my words.

So I gave them.

"No matter how formidable the intelligence networks of the Hao Gate and Cheonrim may be — the Grand Elder of the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect met with elders of the Asura Sword Sect. A meeting like that, where both parties appear in person, must take place where no one can see. Yet they met inside a Cheonrim black market. And if the conversation they supposedly held amounts to nothing more than that written exchange, they could have accomplished it through subordinates or a secret letter. This was done with the deliberate intention ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of being discovered."

Un Dohyeon asked.

"Then, as you say, my lord — those two elders are being used."

"Two possibilities. Either they're being used, or the Grand Elder of the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect has devised some scheme to manipulate the situation. If it's the latter, he seems to want a seat at this table. But if it's the former... I have no words."

I could understand wanting stability. But if they were genuinely being used, then acting this foolishly was beyond all tolerance.

In any case, a rough picture was forming.

When an enemy appears from outside, the inside unites — that is how it normally works. But this sect had been shattered from within from the start, so unity was out of the question.

"Answer me immediately if either of you knows. Of the four regions named in that correspondence — Cheongyang-gun, Boseong-gun, Cheongan-gun, and Mungang-gun — is there any place connected to Jeon Wi or Yeong So-pyeong?"

The two men looked at each other, exchanging opinions with their eyes.

Myeong Hyeon spoke first.

"The branch head of Cheongyang-gun is one of Jeon Wi's men. The branch head of Mungang-gun belongs not to those two elders, but to Cho Dong."

"And Boseong and Cheongan?"

"They're the type who scramble to string lines to whoever holds power... but as of now, they can hardly be called any one person's men."

I tapped the table.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

The steady rhythm soaked into the branch hall.

The situation was clear.

Right now, who in the Asura Sword Sect wanted a 'full-scale war'?

Dokgo Dan-ya did not shy away from a fight that walked to his door, but he needed time to prepare. He was a man of many thoughts.

The elders wanting stability was nothing new. The intentions of the Asura Pavilion Master Sangguan Yeonhwi were unreadable.

Which left, for now, precisely two people: me and Myo Man-li.

And yet.

Looking at it now, unlike the Asura Sword Sect, the Heaven-Breaking Fist Sect seemed brimming with the intent to drag things into open war.

This was an omen.

In my view, the Asura Sword Sect absolutely must not avoid this fight.

The longer time passed, the more the disadvantage mounted — for the Asura Sword Sect.

Because the enemy was united, and we were not.

"Myeong Hyeon."

"Yes, my lord."

"How long can you sustain your Five Qi Gathering power?"

"About one sichik."

"So it wasn't a full recovery after all."

Myeong Hyeon scratched his head.

"Take five stalks of hundred-year ginseng."

"Five of them?"

"That's right. Eat them and come back to a complete Five Qi Gathering state. Is that enough?"

"Yes. It's more than enough."

Myeong Hyeon answered without complaint, then asked me with a trace of curiosity.

"But why are you investigating the Asura Pavilion Master, my lord? Even to my eyes, that man is a loyal vassal of the Sect Master."

It wasn't a definitive reason, but there had been something that nagged at me.

I had a rough grasp of what kind of man Dokgo Dan-ya was.

He valued strength.

As Sect Master, he propped up the Asura Sword Sect through power alone.

Above all, they said Dokgo Dan-ya had spent most of his time in seclusion training. With no Young Sect Master present, and a Grand Elder so wildly free-spirited, it was only natural for the elders to run rampant — but could Dokgo Dan-ya truly not have foreseen it?

The ones upholding the disciplines he had established were, unmistakably, his subordinates. And as Myeong Hyeon said, the Asura Pavilion Master Sangguan Yeonhwi was Dokgo Dan-ya's loyal man.

It should have been Sangguan Yeonhwi who reined in the internal factions.

But he had not.

How should I put it — it was as if he was guarding his own skin.

The affair at the Sambong branch, too, was something the Asura Pavilion Master could have resolved within his own authority. Yet under the pretext of being overruled by the elders, he did nothing. Then what of everything before that?

The elders forming their factions, rotting the Sword Sect from the bottom up — there was no way he could have been blind to that entire process. He was the head of the Asura Pavilion, after all.

Factions inevitably form wherever people live together, and tolerating them to a degree is entirely understandable.

But all of that only holds when their direction aligns with ours.

If the direction differs, they must be cut off without hesitation.

That Dokgo Dan-ya holds the man dear is beside the point. And what kind of man he is — I don't care about that either.

What matters is that he knew, and let it fester.

Even if he had reported everything to Dokgo Dan-ya, he should still have handled that much himself.

Even with the factions split, as head of the Asura Pavilion he should have rooted out the factions within his own hall on his own initiative, without waiting for the Sect Master's order.

He did not.

One need only look at what Myeong Hyeon and Un Dohyeon had just told me. It was obvious.

Which branch head belonged to which elder, and which branch belonged to whom.

Frankly, he grates on me. The Asura Pavilion is the post that commands the Sword Sect's entire military force. This is only my opinion, but Sangguan Yeonhwi seemed better suited to being an elder than to being the Asura Pavilion Master.

That's why I'm investigating. To obtain certainty.

And.

"Un Dohyeon."

"Yes, my lord."

"How goes the recruitment?"

"I requested ten disciples of Master Yi — men with no political backing whose martial cultivation has reached at least the Twin Radiance Illumination stage."

"Some of them will have been lured in by the elders' hooks."

"...That's not out of the question."

"Whatever they do, as long as they don't cross the line, let it be."

"May I ask what line you mean, my lord?"

It was simple.

"If they become entangled in anything that could endanger the lives of the three of us — you, me, and Myeong Hyeon — execute them on the spot. Otherwise, if they're only licking up the crumbs, tolerate it."

"Yes. I will do so."

I thought for a moment.

For now, the intelligence I had just received had to be sent to the Sword Sect.

I had no intention of moving myself. Someone was clearly playing games, and I had not the slightest desire to wade into that board and dance on their strings.

I felt no loyalty to the Asura Sword Sect, but neither did I intend to turn away from what needed doing.

"Stamp it with my seal and send the Sect Master a summary of everything we just heard."

"How shall we handle the source of the intelligence?"

"Omit it. 'Learned of it through good fortune' — that much is sufficient."

"Yes, my lord."

And then.

"When will the requested men arrive?"

"It's been some time since the request went out, so they should arrive sometime today."

Not bad.

"You should go recover as well. I authorize five stalks of hundred-year ginseng for you."

"Thank you."

The two men each took their five stalks of hundred-year ginseng and headed for the underground chambers.

I reviewed the plan ahead in my head.

Five Qi Gathering.

Not a low realm, but far from satisfying.

One year at the minimum.

Within that time, I intended to break into the Realm of Harmony.