Chapter 102
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 102
Chapter Title: Yu Gong-seon's Dream
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Yu Gong-seon muttered unwittingly.
“Central Plains…… advance?”
“…….”
But Seol Hwa-un said no more, leisurely waiting for him to open his mouth.
Yu Gong-seon's expression shifted several times. After some time had passed like that, he finally regained his composure.
“Such an unexpected statement left me dazed for a moment. My apologies, Young Palace Lord.”
“It's fine.”
“Waking from sleep has slowed my wits. The Five Great Protectors must have introduced me to you, Young Palace Lord?”
“Yes.”
“Impressive. I'd heard the rumors about you, Young Palace Lord, but I never imagined you'd convince even the Five Great Protectors.”
Just from the fact that Seol Hwa-un had come to seek him out, he inferred a great many things. The gaze of Yu Gong-seon, now utterly serious, gleamed with brilliance.
‘……Is this his true nature?’
Yu Gong-seon had originally been just one ordinary North Sea native.
Not even from one of the Five Great Families that formed the foundation of the North Sea Ice Palace, he had self-cultivated martial arts from a young age and entered the palace as a low-rank warrior.
His talent was considerable, and he quickly distinguished himself, eventually becoming a training warrior for the Snow Family.
Unfortunately, due to his constitution, ice arts did not suit his body, and he could not advance beyond a certain level.
In the North Sea Ice Palace, being unable to cultivate ice arts was tantamount to a death sentence for a martial artist.
But whether by heaven's grace or not, he also possessed considerable talent in scholarly pursuits.
Thanks to that, Yu Gong-seon soon rose to the position of the Snow Family's youngest chief steward.
For an outsider unaffiliated with the Snow Family to become chief steward was an exceedingly rare occurrence.
Once he had climbed to that position, he began to gradually reveal the dream he had kept hidden.
“That dream—you still hold it close to your heart?”
Yu Gong-seon gave a subtle smile.
“Well.”
“Wasn't the North Sea Ice Palace's advance into the Central Plains precisely your dream, Chief Yu?”
“…….”
That was the issue. At the time, the Snow Family head had deemed such a Yu Gong-seon a highly dangerous figure and forcibly dispatched him to the Elder Council.
Yet because they valued his talents so highly, it had ended there.
Yu Gong-seon gave a wry smile.
“That's why I'm rotting away here like this. Do you really think I haven't abandoned that dream yet?”
“Honestly, I have no idea.”
Seol Hwa-un hadn't even known Yu Gong-seon's name until the Five Great Protectors mentioned him.
“Pardon? Then why…….”
“But the Five Great Protectors, who have watched you here for so long, would know better than I. I merely trusted their discernment and came.”
“…….”
“Even if you refuse, there's nothing to be done. Regardless, the palace will advance into the Central Plains, with or without Chief Yu.”
“…….”
Yu Gong-seon silently stared at Seol Hwa-un.
‘He's in earnest. I'd heard the rumors, but truly the Central Plains…….’
Thump!
Thump!
The realization hit him, and his heart began to pound fiercely once more.
“……!”
Yu Gong-seon's eyes burned with intensity.
“To be honest…… I'd half-given up. I even thought dying quietly here might not be so bad.”
“That sounds like it's no longer the case.”
“I truly intended to live that way. Until Young Palace Lord so assuredly declared the advance into the Central Plains.”
A blazing passion welled up from the depths of Yu Gong-seon's eyes.
“The North Sea Ice Palace's advance into the Central Plains. Until recently, it was a notion too audacious to even voice aloud. Yet you speak of it so casually—it's almost deflating.”
Seol Hwa-un could imagine the pressure he had endured.
‘Even Father the Palace Lord chafed under the Elder Council's pressure, let alone an ordinary palace official like him…….’
Yu Gong-seon bowed his head with resolute determination.
“Young Palace Lord, put me to use in the palace's advance into the Central Plains! I thought I'd forgotten it…… but reflection has shown me otherwise.”
Seol Hwa-un smiled faintly.
“Very well. Then tell me your specific plan.”
“……Pardon? Right now?”
“Isn't it your dream, Chief Yu? Surely you've devised countless plans.”
“True, but…….”
“Let's hear one. That way, I can judge for myself whether you're capable.”
Yu Gong-seon looked stunned.
“Doesn't the order seem a bit reversed? Shouldn't you assess my abilities first…….”
Seol Hwa-un had originally planned to do just that, but seeing the man's more dire state than anticipated, he had changed tack.
Thus, he had gone straight to the point in hopes of stirring his spirit.
“That hardly matters.”
“Ahem! Understood.”
Yu Gong-seon's eyes sparkled.
“Explaining the plan is simple enough. However, without knowing the precise state of the palace and the Central Plains, it would amount to nothing more than empty words.”
Seol Hwa-un nodded in agreement.
“Fortunately, I have a rough grasp of the palace's situation. And since Young Palace Lord has only just returned from the Central Plains, you must know the state of affairs there intimately.”
“I do.”
“Would you share it with me? Ah, and tell me of the events during your Central Plains journey as well.”
“Hm.”
“I hear you greatly enhanced the palace's reputation on this trip, so that knowledge would be immensely helpful.”
“Very well.”
Seol Hwa-un began his account calmly. He recounted verbatim the tale he had shared with the palace leadership, alongside a brief overview of the Central Plains situation.
The North Wind Brigade Leader's absence left some explanations wanting, but Yu Gong-seon adroitly highlighted the key points with pointed questions.
As the astonishing feats of Seol Hwa-un and his group unfolded, Yu Gong-seon listened with shining eyes, absorbed, betraying no overt reaction.
“……And so we agreed to a truce with Yi Jeong-myeong.”
With the story concluded, Yu Gong-seon finally reacted.
“To consider a truce at that juncture! A brilliant decision, Young Palace Lord.”
“……Really?”
Seol Hwa-un wore an odd expression. The part of his tale that had elicited the strongest response thus far was undoubtedly the battle against the Four Evils Heavenly Gate.
Yet Yu Gong-seon placed the highest value on the truce with Yi Jeong-myeong.
He spoke evenly.
“Indeed, your Central Plains journey merits evaluation as a resounding success. That said, a few points give me pause.”
“What might those be?”
“Your paramount objective on this Central Plains trip was not the palace's advance there. Correct?”
“……!”
Seol Hwa-un flinched despite himself. Yu Gong-seon's dispassionate words pressed on.
“You may have kept it in mind, but it was hardly the foremost priority. Had it been, you would never have antagonized the Evil Alliance—not even if we dismiss the Green Forest Eighteen Bandits.”
“Well…….”
“Certainly, we could not overlook the Evil Alliance's brazen attempt on the palace. Even so, I would have seized the opportunity to forge friendly ties with them.”
Seol Hwa-un frowned in displeasure. Undeterred, Yu Gong-seon continued.
“Right or wrong, it would undoubtedly aid the palace's advance into the Central Plains.”
“…….”
Seol Hwa-un found himself unable to refute it.
“Before I outline the plan, allow me one question.”
“Speak.”
“If the palace formally enters the Central Plains, it seems you intend to lead the vanguard yourself, Young Palace Lord. Is that right?”
Seol Hwa-un nodded.
“Yes.”
“Then you must bear one thing in mind above all else. In every action you take, the palace must come first.”
“Naturally.”
Yu Gong-seon spoke as if peering into Seol Hwa-un's very soul.
“You must believe it deeply, sincerely, from the bottom of your heart.”
“…….”
Confronted so directly, Seol Hwa-un could not help but reflect on himself.
‘Hm…….’
He had gradually awakened to his identity as a North Sea man, coming to cherish the North Sea as his homeland. Yet in one corner of his heart lingered the Heavenly Collapse Fist Emperor, Lord of the Martial Alliance and son of the Central Plains.
Thus, he had charged headlong into every injustice, heedless of consequences, to set things right. In doing so, however, he had also made needless enemies.
‘To them, I embody the North Sea Ice Palace itself.’
They would view the palace—not him personally—as their foe.
‘We achieved substantial results, but…… my personal impulses have complicated matters too.’
As Seol Hwa-un lapsed into thought, Yu Gong-seon bowed his head lightly.
“My apologies. I've disturbed your composure with idle words. You performed more than admirably, Young Palace Lord.”
“No, it was a fair critique.”
Seol Hwa-un's eyes flashed.
“With that in mind, have you settled on a plan?”
“Hahaha, one truly can't let their guard down around you. Now I understand why everyone in the Ice Palace fawns 'Young Palace Lord' this and that.”
He gave a faint smile.
“The broad strokes are in place.”
“Then let's hear them.”
“One moment…….”
He rummaged through the surrounding clutter and produced a map depicting the Central Plains.
“…….”
“……My apologies.”
Filth of all sorts stained it, but it was still legible enough.
“The palace cannot plunge straight into the heart of the Central Plains. Naturally, we'll need a bridgehead along the way.”
“Indeed.”
Yu Gong-seon pointed to one spot with his finger.
“The most suitable location is right ‘here.’”
* * *
Seol Hwa-un stood silently, observing Yu Gong-seon.
‘Fascinating.’
Yu Gong-seon was now circulating his qi in meditation. After nearly a decade as a cripple, he was restoring his wrecked body.
From the body of Yu Gong-seon, seated cross-legged on the floor, an astonishingly sweltering heat emanated.
‘One Yang Divine Art.’
The One Yang Divine Art was an ancient Daoist yang reinforcement technique, a martial art lost to the world for centuries.
Even during Seol Hwa-un's tenure as the Heavenly Collapse Fist Emperor, it had remained hidden.
‘To think our palace preserved it. An unexpected windfall. One might say heaven itself aids the palace's advance into the Central Plains?’
He had no idea how it had come into their possession.
In any case, the divine art recorded in a manual Yu Gong-seon had chanced upon in the Snow Family library was none other than this One Yang Divine Art.
Warriors of the North Sea Ice Palace naturally had no interest in yang reinforcement techniques. No matter how profound, they were ill-suited for cultivation in the North Sea.
Thus, Yu Gong-seon had claimed the One Yang Divine Art with relative ease. For a man whose constitution forbade proper cultivation of yin-cold arts, it was nothing short of a heavenly gift.
The sole drawback was how fiendishly difficult it was to practice in the North Sea's unique environment.
‘And yet he's achieved this much.’
By Seol Hwa-un's estimation, Yu Gong-seon's internal energy had reached at least the first-rate realm purely on its own merits—a testament to his extraordinary talent.
‘Had he been born in the Central Plains, he might have ascended to the peak realm or beyond ages ago.’
A true prodigy in both letters and arms.
As Seol Hwa-un stood unwitting guard with such reflections, he suddenly sensed approaching presences.
“……?”
Six in number. All experts of considerable caliber.