Chapter 144
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 144
Chapter Title: The Chief's Dilemma
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Seol Hwa-un calmly asked in return.
“What story would you like to hear?”
The Yangtze Dragon King spoke directly.
“Didn’t you have any thoughts at all after seeing my son?”
“……That’s not the case.”
“Heh heh, I figured the North Heaven Dragon would have sensed it for sure.”
Seol Hwa-un glanced at Handang and finally understood why Mae Jong-pyo, not the son, had emerged as one of the candidates for next Chief Stronghold Lord.
‘Their martial prowess is similar, or perhaps the Dragon King Brigade Leader even seems a bit superior…….’
A righteous knight as the Chief of the Yangtze Waterway Stronghold?
No matter how much the Yangtze Waterway Stronghold had transformed, this was a line that simply couldn’t be crossed.
The Yangtze Dragon King spoke with a sigh.
“……I raised my son wrong.”
“That’s too harsh a statement. Even in the Central Plains martial world, I haven’t seen many talents on par with Handang Leader.”
“Heh heh heh, his abilities are top-notch anywhere. But doesn’t he have a far bigger problem?”
It might have been better if his abilities had been lacking. He would have kicked him out without a second thought.
“That kid isn’t cut out to be Chief. He’s too lofty for it.”
“…….”
“The problem is that he has no shortage of followers.”
His temperament didn’t suit the Chief position, but his abilities were more than sufficient. And being the Yangtze Dragon King’s blood made him popular with supporters.
Yet, there were just as many opposed to him.
‘If things go wrong, the Yangtze Waterway Stronghold could split in two.’
With the Yangtze Dragon King still hale and hearty, it might be premature to worry.
But even if he didn’t die, he couldn’t hold the Chief position forever.
“In a situation like this, I can’t even retire if I wanted to.”
“You’ll have to make a decision eventually. For the future of the Yangtze Waterway Stronghold, at least.”
The Yangtze Dragon King nodded.
“Phew, you’re right.”
“Who do you think would be suitable for Chief Stronghold Lord?”
After a moment of silence, the Yangtze Dragon King cautiously opened his mouth.
“There are three names coming up the most: the Inspection Unit Leader, the Dragon King Brigade Leader, and the Gu River Water Stronghold Lord, whom you know well.”
“…….”
“As I said earlier, the Dragon King Brigade Leader is out. And the Inspection Unit Leader lacks the vessel to lead the entire Yangtze Waterway Stronghold. He admits it himself.”
“Then you must have the Mae Stronghold Lord in mind?”
“He’s reasonably righteous and cunning enough. Boisterous personality, but he knows how to be decisive. All around, he’s the most fitting for Chief.”
“…….”
“But he has the weakest support base among the three. The others might rebel if we name him successor instead of the Dragon King Brigade Leader or Inspection Unit Leader.”
“A real dilemma.”
It was truly a situation where he couldn’t move forward or back.
“It’s my biggest headache right now. Solve this, and I could retire with peace of mind.”
As he spoke, the Yangtze Dragon King gazed at Seol Hwa-un with eyes somehow filled with expectation.
‘It’s burdensome.’
Sure enough.
“I hear you have quite the insight and perception.”
“…….”
“Isn’t there a good solution?”
Seol Hwa-un gave a wry smile.
‘Did he invite me here just to ask this?’
After organizing his thoughts for a moment, he slowly spoke.
“Several ideas come to mind, but none are easy. The Yangtze Waterway Stronghold might go through a rough patch.”
“Heh heh, truly no way?”
“If you insist…… There is one relatively better option. It minimizes side effects, but I’m not sure if you’d accept it, Chief.”
The Yangtze Dragon King’s eyes gleamed.
“What is it?”
“First, let me ask: Do the Inspection Unit Leader and Dragon King Brigade Leader truly have no ambition for the Chief position?”
“That’s my judgment.”
Seol Hwa-un shook his head.
“Assumptions won’t do. You never know what’s in a person’s heart, even if you know the depths of ten fathoms of water. You must confirm it directly.”
“Hmm.”
“Under the premise that those two have no desire for the Stronghold Lord position, I’ll explain. For reference, this method will take at least five years or more.”
“Hmm, so you mean delaying retirement by five years.”
“Better than the Yangtze Waterway Stronghold splitting, isn’t it? Depending on circumstances, it could take even longer.”
“Understood. Then tell me the method.”
“First, summon the three separately and make them bare their true intentions. And then…….”
“……!”
The Yangtze Dragon King’s expression changed several times as he listened.
* * *
The Dragon King Festival continued. The bandits, having rested during the day, crawled out again at night to drink.
Occasionally, drunken bandits caused trouble, but Dragon King Brigade members appeared quietly and subdued them swiftly, preventing any major issues.
And so, the final day arrived.
Seol Hwa-un’s group had spent the time shaking off their worries for once and purely enjoying the festival.
Dong Ho-won, his nose red, said.
“Ugh! This is great. I didn’t know liquor was this good.”
“Yeah. Why haven’t we drunk like this before?”
Eom Mu-hwi and Dong Ho-won linked arms and kept downing drinks.
Seol Hwa-un watched them with a wry smile.
‘They’ve completely let loose.’
If left as is, they had every sign of becoming alcoholics.
‘I’ll have to tighten discipline when we get back.’
Still, Seol Hwa-un didn’t say anything now, meaning for them to enjoy a few days freely.
‘Come to think of it, they haven’t had a single day’s rest since joining me.’
He had constantly urged them on and raised their martial arts realms.
He hadn’t forgotten to appropriately stoke their competitive spirits. Thanks to that, Eom Mu-hwi and Dong Ho-won had achieved far superior skills to their peers.
‘Just follow me a bit more to the Martial Unification Realm.’
After that, further urging would be pointless. Only a long, tedious battle with oneself remained.
Lost in such thoughts, suddenly the music that had echoed for five days stopped, and the musicians withdrew.
“……?”
Mae Jong-pyo ascended the platform.
“Gu River Water Stronghold Lord, Mae Jong-pyo here. Is everyone enjoying the Dragon King Festival?”
“Of course, Mae Stronghold Lord!”
“We’re going all out since it’s the last night!”
Mae Jong-pyo burst into laughter.
“Hahaha, even this Stronghold Lord is sad it’s the final day. So, I’m planning a little event.”
“Oh!”
“From now on, anyone come up and show off your prized talent. The one with the best reaction from the crowd will get a hundred taels of gold from this Stronghold Lord—my entire fortune!”
The bandits’ eyes went wide.
“Not silver, but gold!”
“As expected, big spender!”
“Mae Stronghold Lord, isn’t that overdoing it?”
Mae Jong-pyo smiled gently.
“No wife or kids, so what’s money for? No restrictions. Anyone come show off your amazing talent!”
Then, the Yangtze Dragon King, sitting to one side, chuckled and spoke.
“Mae Stronghold Lord made an interesting proposal. This old man will add a prize too.”
“Oh!”
“The Chief himself?”
The crowd looked at him expectantly.
“It’s nothing grand. A jade Buddha statue I happened to acquire long ago.”
The Yangtze Dragon King pulled a small Buddha statue from his bosom.
Carved from jade, about the size of an adult’s finger, it was exquisitely detailed.
He added an explanation.
“It has artistic value, but it’s a treasure in itself. Made of Kunyang Jade, with excellent warming properties.”
Kunyang Jade.
Far rarer than Kunlun Jade from the Kunlun Mountains, it inherently held yang energy.
“It might help warriors cultivating yang river qi.”
The crowd, initially disappointed by the small size, perked up at the Yangtze Dragon King’s words.
“Ooh!”
“I want it, I want it!”
Seol Hwa-un, who had been casually eyeing the jade Buddha, widened his eyes.
‘That’s!’
His pupils trembled.
‘Why does the Yangtze Dragon King have that item?’
The Yangtze Dragon King seemed unaware, but Seol Hwa-un knew its exact origin.
While he was shocked, bandits climbed the platform to show their talents.
From one juggling six daggers with both hands, to one showing off a muscular physique, to one with near-tone-deaf singing—various skills were displayed.
Even.
Pffft!
“Wahahahaha!”
One bandit startled the crowd with a massive fart.
Then, a stronghold lord raised his hand.
“Mae Stronghold Lord, can we participate as a group?”
“Of course!”
At his crisp reply, over twenty bandits rushed the platform together.
Soon, an amazing scene unfolded.
They formed letters with their bodies, built tall human pyramids, and struck bizarre poses to mimic various objects ingeniously.
The crowd couldn’t hide their amazement.
“Waaah!”
“When did they practice that?”
“That’s Yuan River Water Stronghold’s lord. He does this often when bored. Someone got the idea, and they practiced specially because it was fun.”
“Amazing!”
The sheer scale captivated the audience instantly.
Waaah!
After the performance, Mae Jong-pyo said.
“That was fantastic! I was worried the farter would take first, but phew!”
“Wahahaha!”
The performance was so impressive that no one else stepped up.
“Alright, seems no more, so we’ll wrap up here…….”
At that moment, Seol Hwa-un raised his hand. Dong Ho-won and Eom Mu-hwi beside him jumped in surprise.
‘Huh?’
‘The Young Palace Lord?’
Mae Jong-pyo spotted Seol Hwa-un and lit up.
“Oh! North Heaven Dragon!”
Seol Hwa-un asked.
“Can I participate and win a prize too?”
“Hahaha! This is unexpected. Of course!”
“Then I’ll join.”
“Ooo!”
“The North Heaven Dragon?”
The bandits looked at him curiously.
‘A bit embarrassing, but…….’
To reclaim the jade Buddha, he had no choice. He couldn’t just snatch it after winning.
Seol Hwa-un leaped onto the platform in one bound. Elegant lightness skill.
“Cool!”
“What talent will he show?”
The bandits’ eyes filled with anticipation.
Seol Hwa-un said calmly.
“I have no special talents. Just a bit handy with martial arts.”
“Hahaha, the North Heaven Dragon says ‘a bit handy’!”
“Too modest, aren’t you?”
He continued.
“So, I’ll show one technique from my palace.”
“Oh!”
“Looking forward to it.”
“Not like, sword control or something, right?”
“Nah, even he wouldn’t. Plus, he’s a fist fighter.”
“Right.”
“Then, here I go.”
“……!”
The crowd quickly shut up and focused on Seol Hwa-un. He lightly extended his hands to both sides.
Bang!
Seol Hwa-un closed his eyes and circulated the Ice White Divine Art. Soon, qi waves burst from his hands, scattering in all directions.
“…….”
Then, wind began blowing from somewhere.
Whoooosh~!
“Huh? Sudden wind…….”
Whoooosh!
The wind grew stronger. Soon, the crowd realized one thing.
‘The center of the wind…….’
‘The North Heaven Dragon?’
The wind intensified, shaking the surrounding tents violently.
Papapapapa!
They didn’t notice, but Seol Hwa-un’s outstretched hands were slowly clenching into fists.
And.
The moment the fists fully formed.
Papapapapapow!
The torches lighting the area extinguished one by one, plunging the surroundings into darkness in an instant.
“……!”