Chapter 125
Chapter 125
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 125
Chapter Title: Spill Everything You Know (2)
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"What in the world were you doing out here?"
Mong-a was flabbergasted. Just a short while ago, she'd bid farewell to this man, saying they'd meet again soon, and now here he was, tailing her.
And he was supposed to be one of the righteous faction, no less.
"My apologies, Nun. But first, I need to deal with these thugs."
The man brazenly brushed off Mong-a's words and turned back to the bandits.
"Tell me why you targeted her. Or I'll really kill you."
As he unleashed his aura to pressure them, his presence was quite formidable.
In terms of inner energy alone, he was on par with Mong-a herself.
"W-Well..."
The bandit, who'd been glancing around nervously, finally spilled the beans.
Mong-a wanted to stop him from talking, but she had no grounds to do so.
"I-It's just a rumor going around..."
"What rumor?"
"That this nun Mong-a knows... where the Heavenly Martial Codex is..."
"First I've heard of it."
"I-I only heard it secretly myself, so it probably hasn't spread far..."
Mong-a watched the man's face intently, her expression tense.
Even the elders of the Emei Sect, who had cultivated their Buddha hearts for decades, couldn't hide their greed at that name.
"That's weird."
"..."
"Not to say it to your face, but it doesn't seem like someone like you would easily get hold of that kind of secret info...?"
To a martial artist, kung fu was their greatest treasure, and the Heavenly Martial Codex was a name that set any Jianghu wanderer's heart racing.
It was the manual said to contain the arts of Sword God Hwa Cheon-u, who had defeated the Heavenly Demon over two hundred years ago.
But the man acted as if he had no interest in the name at all.
"I-I don't know either. But if we get our hands on that..."
"You'll die. To someone even greater than you, who wants the Heavenly Martial Codex just as bad."
"...It's the Heavenly Martial Codex."
"...Ah, slipped up there."
The man whipped his head toward Mong-a and spoke.
"Do you really know about it, Nun?"
"...I don't."
"And that's why all these people are after you?"
Mong-a nodded cautiously. In truth, there were plenty who'd held grudges after she'd crushed them for toying with her.
The man tilted his head, then struck the bandit's acupoint.
The bandit squeezed his eyes shut, but when his movement acupoint released, he tried to flee—only for the man to trip him with a leg sweep.
"Where do you think you're going? All of you, line up."
The man used Finger Wind to threaten them into a line, then had the leader tear his own upper garment to bind his subordinates' wrists.
Mong-a watched the man uneasily, yet a flicker of hope welled up inside her.
The twenty-odd bandits, wrists bound in a row, were safely handed over to the local authorities.
I'd tagged along with Mong-a under the pretext of not dumping the duty of upholding justice solely on me as a righteous sect member, and we'd come all the way to Qinghai Province. Now we stopped at an inn for a meal.
There happened to be an empty private room attached to the inn, so we set the table there. Even if some secret talk came up, no problem.
"Why did you follow me?"
"You don't seem to realize, Nun, but normal people don't go out in such dangerous situations."
"...And?"
"This time it was just some small-time bandits, lucky for us. But who knows when something worse might happen? Leaving you to wander around like that felt a bit..."
"So you tailed me?"
"I needed to step away from the Tang Family for a bit anyway."
I decided to play it bold. Better to bulldoze through than trip over a lame excuse.
"I appreciate the young hero's intentions. But such baseless rumors will fade soon enough..."
"Will they, really?"
The Heavenly Martial Codex.
First time hearing the name. Sounded epic, and without any extra explanation, it had to be some legendary manual everyone knew.
Middle-school syndrome vibes oozing from it—probably one of the top arts in history.
"If it were common gossip, fine. But secret info known only to a few reaching lowlifes like those bandits? That's not normal."
I wasn't particularly sharp, but I knew this situation was off.
'An unnatural situation like this probably means someone engineered it.'
The Nine Great Sects or Five Great Families, I could understand...
"Nun, answer me honestly."
"...Don't get involved any further. You could get hurt."
Her unexpectedly worried tone startled me a bit.
Mong-a's voice had mostly been curt up till now, but this felt genuinely warm.
"If there's trouble, wouldn't getting help from the Emei Sect be wisest?"
"...I can't rely on my sect."
Damn it.
"You don't want meddlers, but you can't get sect help either—what exactly do you plan to do?"
"...It's not that I hate meddlers."
Huh?
"You don't know how heavy the weight of grudges and vendettas in the Jianghu can be. A lighthearted intervention can lead to catastrophe."
"..."
"Your intentions... are right. As a righteous martial artist, ignoring others' plights is wrong. But..."
Mong-a trailed off. I didn't know what she meant to say, but pain flashed across her face, like old wounds reopening.
"What about the Emei Sect? Isn't getting your sect's aid a disciple's right?"
"Ha..."
Her hollow laugh suggested more baggage there.
"Young hero, what did you feel hearing the name Heavenly Martial Codex?"
"Whoa, sounds amazing... Something like that?"
I had no idea how great it was, but even if it outshone the Ascending Immortal Art, it meant nothing to me.
I couldn't even fully grasp the Immortal Art yet—my martial understanding lagged behind my inner energy growth. A superior art wouldn't change that.
"I figured you'd react that way. Saw your blank face when you heard it."
"...Meaning the Emei folks didn't."
It made sense. If a sect protects its disciples, disciples must devote themselves to the sect in turn.
If Emei heard the rumor, of course they'd want it themselves.
"So that's why you're suffering alone instead of returning home? They want something you don't even know?"
"Yes. Only the Alliance Leader knows my full situation."
Sword Saint.
Crazy bastard itching to bite his master, but a renowned hero to the righteous sects—trustworthy.
Couldn't interfere openly in another sect's affairs, so he was handling it through the Martial Alliance, sending Mong-a on errands to keep her out.
"Then I'm second."
"...Something like that."
This was a hell of a mess. Someone was spreading rumors that Mong-a knew the location of some incredible manual.
A treasure no different from gold or jewels to any martial artist.
But she knew nothing, and no one believed her denials.
"Now you understand. This isn't something you can fix by getting involved."
"But you're trying to do something about it too, aren't you, Nun? Why come to Qinghai otherwise?"
"..."
Mong-a pondered, then sent me a transmission.
[Truth be told... it's not that there are zero clues.]
What now?
[Before entering Emei Mountain... I had a husband. He once stumbled upon a clue to the Heavenly Martial Codex's whereabouts.]
Her late husband's clue—she'd simply kept it safe all these years. But lately, the issue had resurfaced.
[So you're carrying that clue, searching for the Codex?]
[...Yes.]
Damn. If I didn't care about the Codex, I'd have destroyed the clue or handed it off.
Her husband's death might even tie into this.
'If she's doing it to honor his memory, it fits.'
[Next stop is Kunlun Mountain, then.]
Mong-a nodded. I'd guessed from her detour to Wudang Mountain in Hubei—nailed it.
'I'll go with her.'
Even the seemingly grumpy Mong-a had reasons that made sense once known.
I wanted to help. I couldn't be heartless to a woman cherishing her husband's memory.
Then a thought struck me, and I spoke up.
"Nun, those guys we ran into on the last journey... all of them...?"
"Ah, most were people with grudges against me. Plenty think they can toy with a nun lightly."
...Though not many would beat them up for it.
Some things really were self-inflicted.
"Yes, Hye-ah, what brings you here?"
Namgung Hye set down her teacup. Across from her, her mother smiled warmly, but Namgung Hye just wanted to sigh.
Still, she had to talk. A marriage without family elders felt off.
"Mother, a proposal came from the Huangbo Family."
"I see."
Eon So-young set her teacup down too and continued.
"For them to mention it means things are progressing... Who's the other party? Met him?"
"Huangbo Jun, second son of the current family head."
Namgung Hye pictured Huangbo Jun. He'd followed her from Shandong to Anhui—a simple, honest young man.
A bit small in stature, but kind and considerate. Not a bad match.
"Marriages aren't rushed these days. Do you have to now? We could look for someone better slowly..."
"No. No need."
Namgung Hye cut her mother off coldly.
She still loved her, but every maternal gesture overlapped with that night, making harsh words slip out unwittingly.
Namgung Hye glanced at Eon So-young's belly. It swelled hugely now—birth was near.
Choosing Huangbo Jun was rebellion against such a mother.
'I could never live with a man like that.'
Better a gentle man who cherished women than a beast who lusted after them. That led to Huangbo Jun.
"We'll probably need to meet their elders a few times."
"Alright..."
Once the baby came, Mother could resume public life.
Others might not notice, but Namgung Hye couldn't see her the same way anymore.
Just get through the wedding.
That would make her a Huangbo, free from dwelling on her changed mother.
Sincerely.