Chapter 204
Chapter 204
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 204
Chapter Title: As Long as We Don't Get Caught (1)
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The next day.
After pounding Mae So-hyang right up to the brink of collapse, I woke with a deeply satisfied sense of refreshment in my lower body.
Because I'd gone at her without an ounce of mercy, she couldn't even pull herself together properly while washing up. In the end, she had to forget all about sharing information or whatever and head back to her quarters to rest.
'Will it really be tough to use the Ascending Immortal Art after all?'
Using only her back entrance had made it an impossible option from the start, but now that I could use the front one too, deploying the Ascending Immortal Art was entirely feasible.
But the problem was that the art was inherently a lust technique, and I hesitated to use it on Mae So-hyang, who was desperately clinging to her animosity toward me.
If things went south, she might even realize she could treat me like a human elixir.
"Who knows. It'll work itself out once I give it a shot."
Her reactions came the instant I pulled out, so the stacks were definitely building up steadily. All I needed now was some trigger to spark a dramatic shift in her perception...
For now, I had to go meet up with Mae So-hyang. I didn't even know where her quarters were, and showing up there myself would look suspicious.
The Nine Great Clans folks seemed to be milling around a pavilion called Fragrant Rock Pavilion, so I left my room and headed that way.
"Oh, Young Hero Kang. Sleep well?"
"Young Hero Huangbo. Thanks to your concern, I rested comfortably. My gratitude."
On the way, I ran into Huangbo Jun, who greeted me with a beaming face that lit up my day.
"No need to thank me. I just passed along the message—it was your Namgung Patriarch who gave the okay."
"If you hadn't passed it along, the Namgung Patriarch might have just let it slide without knowing. I still owe you my thanks."
"Haha, is that how it works?"
Huangbo Jun let out a hearty laugh. Then, as if something had just occurred to him, he spoke up.
"By the way, have you greeted the folks from the other clans? Yesterday, it seemed like you were only chatting with the Nine Great Clans people..."
"Ah, not yet..."
I did need to show my face at least once. It had just been pushed to the back of my mind because of Mae So-hyang.
"Want to go together? I'd like to introduce you to the elders from my clan. And if you need, I can do the same for the other clans."
"...I'd be grateful for your kindness."
The Huangbo Family elders, huh. Huangbo Hyo-seon wouldn't just pop up out of nowhere, would she?
Thankfully, no sign of Huangbo Hyo-seon—just some grandfatherly and grandmotherly figures.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm Huangbo Mu-il."
"It's an honor to meet the head of the Huangbo Family. I'm Kang Yun, a humble martial artist from the Jianghu."
"Your aura alone speaks volumes—if you're calling yourself 'humble,' then we've got plenty in the family who'd have to snap their swords in shame. No need for that nonsense."
He looked just like Sword Saint from Shaolin. A dead ringer, really, though maybe a touch slighter in build.
But there was something different about his gaze—no sense of impending danger.
None of that unpredictable, mad-dog vibe from Sword Saint and his grandson, where you never knew when or from where the bite might come.
Put kindly, he was a man of common sense. Put harshly, maybe he hadn't inherited that superhuman intuition.
I offered the Huangbo Patriarch a modest greeting and congratulations on the wedding, then moved on to pay respects to the others.
The Peng Family had some uncle I didn't recognize, and the Tang Family had sent a lone external elder, so I skipped them.
A few minor clans not part of the Five Great Families were there too, and as I was exchanging greetings with them...
"You! You!"
A booming shout made me turn, and there was some young punk I didn't know at all, pointing right at me with his mouth agape.
"Pardon me, but I don't believe we know each other. Have we met before?"
"You claim you don't know me?!"
He was carrying on like I had some massive grudge against him, but aside from my milf escapades, I'd never committed a single crime in my life.
"I clearly saw your face yesterday!"
"Yesterday?"
Yesterday? Nothing came to mind. Had some alternate personality of mine gone pioneering a new milf yesterday?
"You blocked the path of my carriage yesterday! You can't claim you don't remember, punk!"
...What? Did I hear that right?
Neung Hui-yeon tilted her head, staring at her mother who sat there utterly dumbfounded.
It was rare to see her mother wearing such a blank expression.
Even for Neung Hui-yeon, who often tuned out the world around her and retreated into her own bubble, it was hard not to worry.
"Hui-yeon."
A voice from behind made her turn, revealing Gyeon Ye-jin in fresh arrival garb—known as the Soft Phoenix—and her mother, Wudang's Dan Yu-ran.
"Unni Ye-jin...?"
Thanks to Mae So-hyang's fondness for Dan Yu-ran, Gyeon Ye-jin and Neung Hui-yeon had been friends since childhood.
Truth be told, Neung Hui-yeon found the sociable mother-daughter duo a bit intimidating, but figuring her own mother would be pleased, she welcomed them warmly.
At least by her standards—others might not have seen it that way.
"Welcome. You're quite late."
"I wanted to come sooner, but Mother had other commitments..."
"Oh, you. As if I chose to be away."
Wudang in Hubei was much closer to Anhui than Huashan in Shaanxi, so she figured there must be some reason.
Neung Hui-yeon wasn't one for prying into details, though. She just felt relieved seeing her mother snap out of it and chat as Dan Yu-ran approached.
"Hui-yeon, I thought you wouldn't come."
"I wasn't going to, but Mother half-forced me..."
"Why on earth? Just enjoy yourself. What's the problem?"
While Neung Hui-yeon found men's attention burdensome and avoided it, Gyeon Ye-jin accepted it naturally and reveled in it.
"You might not mind, Unni, but I do."
"What if you end up an old maid because of it? Mother says you have to snag a good man quick."
For someone who supposedly lived by that, Gyeon Ye-jin just basked in the attention without any talk of seriously considering marriage with anyone.
Neung Hui-yeon knew better than to point that out—it would only spark tedious arguments—so she quietly listened to Gyeon Ye-jin's chatter.
"You have to accept their interest and pick the best. The one who'll make you happiest... or the one who'll help you or your sect the most..."
Neung Hui-yeon fundamentally questioned why marriage was even necessary. But she'd long since learned there was no upside to voicing it.
"You're not saying you want a guy who shows zero interest in you, right? Even if one existed, he wouldn't be a proper man..."
[You claim you don't know me?!]
Gyeon Ye-jin's monologue on the nature of men was pierced by a raucous shout from afar, despite her own total lack of ties to them.
"What's going on?"
"For a ruckus like this at the Namgung Family..."
Neung Hui-yeon trailed off, but Gyeon Ye-jin got it immediately.
A disturbance at one of the Five Great Families' gatherings? It'd take serious bad blood.
"Let's check it out."
The two headed toward the noise, even using lightfoot skill to speed things up.
The guy screaming his head off in front of me was apparently Zhuge Ryong of the Zhuge Family.
I was enjoying his logic with rare freshness.
One. How dare a no-name punk like you block the carriage carrying the Zhuge Patriarch and his son—that's a grave offense.
Two. Out of mercy, this young master was willing to overlook it if you'd just step aside.
Three. But not only did you refuse to yield, you went ahead first into the Namgung grounds. If that's not a challenge to the entire Zhuge Family, what is?
'This is refreshingly novel.'
Most martial artists I'd met were reasonable folks.
Setting aside Sword Saint's grandson, who was doomed if word got out he was Blood Demon's disciple.
Even Gyeong Hyeon-dong, who picked a fight over the dumbest reason, probably wouldn't have challenged me to a duel if I hadn't laid into him in front of Young Ho-kyeong.
But watching this lunatic tie "blocking the road" to a "challenge to the Zhuge Family" made me realize the Jianghu always exceeded my wildest expectations.
"Even the Zhuge Patriarch was in the carriage with you?"
"That's right! You dared to sully the Zhuge Family's face..."
"So the Patriarch agreed with your judgment?"
The shrill voice, loud as a pheasant's cry, cut off abruptly. Looked like not quite.
Good. He's just a lone nutcase. If the Patriarch was an idiot too, I'd have suggested Mother usurp the seat.
"Hmph! Still, your actions were insolent! Apologize at once, you cur!"
"I believe the most legitimate authority to judge whether it was a challenge to the entire clan lies with its leader.
With the Patriarch right there, he couldn't have missed if it was aimed at the whole Zhuge Family. For a mere son to fabricate it anyway—isn't that the real insolence?"
"...State your name! Who is your master..."
"Apologize to the Zhuge Patriarch in front of everyone first. Until then, I won't entertain words from a son unqualified to judge others' insolence."
"You—you no-name punk, how dare you...! Who are you to interfere in Zhuge Family affairs? Outsiders keep their mouths shut!"
"Can't exactly call him a complete outsider."
A decent crowd had gathered by now, and a certain middle-aged man had quietly sidled up beside me.
Huangbo Jun next to me swiftly clasped his hands in salute, confirming my guess about the man's identity.
"Greetings to the Zhuge Patriarch."
"Ah, it's been a while. My apologies for my fool of a son embarrassing you in front of the new groom. Visit our estate sometime—I'll host you properly."
The refined face, vaguely reminiscent of my mother's, belonged to none other than the Zhuge Family head, Zhuge Myeong.
Zhuge Myeong glared at Zhuge Ryong for a moment before turning to me.
"I'd heard Young Hero Kang formed a sworn mother-son bond with Ling-i. Is that right?"
"Yes, Patriarch. It's more than I deserve..."
"Nonsense, it's not. Having a son like you must be a great comfort to her..."
After lightly gilding my reputation, Zhuge Myeong cleared his throat and continued.
"My boy was rude to you. Though no blood ties, if you were truly her son, you'd be cousins with Ryong-i, no?"
As Zhuge Myeong worked some family connection magic, I saw no need to utterly humiliate him.
"Seems like a minor misunderstanding. No need to lose face over something like this."
"Father! To a punk like this...!"
But Zhuge Ryong seemed dead set on shaming his dad.
I might not be pure family, but I'd yielded to the Patriarch's will. For his own son to defy him outright...
'Is he an idiot?'
"You fool! Get back to your quarters and reflect on yourself—now!"
Zhuge Myeong's voice, which had been reasonably controlled until addressing me, erupted in fury. Zhuge Ryong shrank like a turtle.
Thanks to Zhuge Myeong's timely intervention, the encounter ended with me just meeting a refreshingly new type of character.
As Zhuge Myeong dragged Zhuge Ryong away, the onlookers lost interest and dispersed like the tide.
'Hm?'
Amid the scattering crowd, I caught a glimpse of Neung Hui-yeon staring blankly at me.
Our eyes met, so I gave her a light nod in greeting before turning away.
Time to greet the folks from the Jongri and Sima Families, then track down Mae So-hyang to hand off the info—and give her a new mission.