Chapter 232: Are You Truly Prepared?
‘Sa Do-myeong’s Sado family plans to strike at Hogye Meng?’
Yeop Hyeon’s mind went blank for a moment.
As if reading his thoughts, Sa Do-myeong continued.
“Yeop Hyeon, you’re a sharp man, so you must understand the situation well. The reason Hogye Meng placed such a massive bounty on your head is to use you to sow discord among the forces of Jungto Sinju. Do you think they’ll let you go easily? And will the treasure-hungry martial artists leave you be?”
Yeop Hyeon clenched his fists tightly. For an instant, his lips trembled.
“No matter where I go, surviving will be hard. In that case, isn’t it better to clash with them head-on? And if we succeed, we might even live!”
Yeop Hyeon shook his head.
“That’s too reckless.”
“I’m telling you, our Sado family will help you! And beyond us, other forces will aid you from the shadows as well!”
“What reason do I have to trust you?”
Yeop Hyeon lifted his head and asked. Sa Do-myeong replied in a calm tone.
“Do you have any other choice? From what I see, the Sword Immortal you trust can no longer oppose Hogye Meng. In that case, isn’t joining hands with us your only way to survive?”
Yeop Hyeon fell deep into thought.
Sa Do-myeong pressed on urgently.
“Without our help, you’ll just be waiting for death.”
“Hmm… So what exactly do you plan to do? Be specific.”
Sa Do-myeong gazed at the distant sky with cold eyes.
“Simple. Hogye Meng’s goal is to destroy Cheongju. So we’ll protect Cheongju instead!”
“Weren’t you trying to destroy Cheongju and Cheonglanju to protect Jungto Sinju?”
“I originally thought that way and supported Hogye Meng. But I discovered they don’t truly care about Jungto Sinju’s safety—they only want Cheongju and Cheonglanju’s core origins. I don’t know what they plan to do with the cores yet, but it’s certainly nothing good!”
Yeop Hyeon spoke in a tone of confusion.
“If they need the cores, why don’t they act directly instead of going around in circles like this?”
“Hmph! Cheongju’s core is hidden deep underground. Unless it reveals itself, even a True Law Realm expert can’t easily find it. But if enough blood soaks into the earth, the core has no choice but to emerge. Cores inherently despise the smell of blood. However, it requires an enormous amount of blood. Hogye Meng, who publicly upholds justice in Qingcang Realm, can’t do this openly!”
Yeop Hyeon shook his head gravely and sighed.
“But countless powerhouses from Jungto Sinju are flooding into Cheongju. How do we stop them all?”
“Jungto Sinju’s major forces won’t join this. And if a True Law Realm expert appears, we’ll handle it ourselves, so don’t worry about that. The rest is up to you.”
Yeop Hyeon nodded.
“I understand.”
Yeop Hyeon realized that Sa Do-myeong’s Sado family—and the other forces he mentioned—were reluctant to openly defy Hogye Meng. That’s why they were using him to check them.
Yeop Hyeon lowered his head slightly, his expression inscrutable.
With no firm answer from Yeop Hyeon, Sa Do-myeong frowned slightly.
“If you still plan to back out, death awaits you. But if you cooperate with us, there might be a slim path to survival.”
Yeop Hyeon clenched his fists tightly, his face heavy as if enduring intense inner conflict. After a moment, he let out a deep sigh and finally spoke.
“Fine! I’ll cooperate with you!”
At those words, Sa Do-myeong inwardly sighed in relief. Just as Yeop Hyeon thought, they didn’t want Hogye Meng’s unchecked dominance. But direct confrontation was burdensome, so they desperately needed someone to step forward in their place.
And no one was more suitable for that role than Yeop Hyeon.
Hogye Meng was using Yeop Hyeon to shake Jungto Sinju’s forces—why couldn’t they use him in return?
Sa Do-myeong couldn’t help but smile inwardly at the man before him. This naive fellow probably didn’t even realize he was just a pawn.
“Hmm… Jungto Sinju already has countless martial artists inside. Their strength generally surpasses Cheongju’s warriors, so stopping their plundering won’t be easy.”
“What if we unite Cheongju’s martial artists? If you band together properly, even Jungto Sinju’s warriors won’t rampage freely.”
Yeop Hyeon cried out with a serious expression.
“That requires money!”
Sa Do-myeong’s eyebrow twitched.
“Who is our enemy? The mighty Hogye Meng. Fighting them with shoddy weapons means we’ll be swept away in an instant!”
Sa Do-myeong pondered briefly before asking.
“How much do you need?”
“Not that much. Just ten billion extreme-grade spiritual stones!”
Sa Do-myeong’s face twisted for a moment.
“Ten billion? And you call that ‘not much’? Are you sure?”
“Hmm… Do you happen to know that this Qingcang Realm is trapped in some mysterious grand formation?”
“H-how do you know that?!”
Sa Do-myeong shouted in shock.
Yeop Hyeon was equally surprised that Sa Do-myeong knew.
Composing himself, Yeop Hyeon continued.
“Then you must know Hogye Meng’s plan is nearly complete. If that happens, you won’t even survive, let alone seek revenge. If we don’t oppose them now, we all die!”
Yeop Hyeon took a deep breath and spoke again.
“You should heed Changmok Academy’s lesson once more. They once rivaled your Sado family in power, but after being crushed in an instant, they can’t even survive on their own now. You’ve suffered major losses this time too—if it happens once or twice more……”
Yeop Hyeon trailed off. Sometimes, silence was more effective.
After much deliberation, Sa Do-myeong finally spoke.
“One day! I’ll give you an answer by then!”
With that, Sa Do-myeong vanished from before Yeop Hyeon.
Yeop Hyeon shrugged once, then resumed his training.
Meanwhile, Sa Do-myeong immediately returned to Jungto Sinju and headed to Changmok Academy.
He couldn’t stake everything on Yeop Hyeon’s words alone. He wanted proof for himself.
Greeted at Changmok Academy was Yeo Gyeong, the head of Jungto Sinju’s branch.
Sa Do-myeong cupped his fists toward him.
“Sa Do-myeong of the Sado family pays respects to Dean Yeo. I’ve come with one question for you.”
“Speak!”
Sa Do-myeong glanced around, then lightly flicked his right hand. An invisible barrier formed around him and Yeo Gyeong.
“What I want to ask is what exactly happened at Cheongju’s Changmok Academy!”
At those words, Yeo Gyeong’s expression darkened instantly. It was the greatest blow the academy had ever suffered since its founding.
“I beg you as an elder!”
Sa Do-myeong cupped his fists again and urged. Yeo Gyeong shook his head and replied.
“I have nothing to say about Yeop Hyeon. But out of concern, beware Hogye Meng. They’re terrifying foes who swallow even bones whole.”
Suddenly, as if recalling something, Yeo Gyeong’s face grew endlessly darker.
He hated Yeop Hyeon, but he loathed Hogye Meng even more. After paying an outrageous fine to them, Changmok Academy had fallen to relying on other powers.
Defeat to Yeop Hyeon was a fair fight—he had to accept it. But Hogye Meng had stabbed them in the back, deepening the grudge.
Sa Do-myeong nodded at Yeo Gyeong’s words.
“Thank you.”
With that, Sa Do-myeong shot into the air.
The next day, Sa Do-myeong appeared before Yeop Hyeon again.
Without a word, he snapped his fingers toward Yeop Hyeon. A lead casket flew to him. Yeop Hyeon’s eyes widened upon inspecting its contents.
Ten billion extreme-grade spiritual stones.
For a moment, the world seemed utterly beautiful to Yeop Hyeon.
“We’ll do our utmost to support you from behind. But if you fall short of expectations, we’ll find someone else immediately. Remember that!”
Yeop Hyeon pocketed the lead casket and nodded.
“I will. But we still have one problem.”
“Problem?”
“We’ll face a fierce war with Hogye Meng ahead. Are you truly prepared?”
“Hmph! From the moment they killed our Sado family warriors, we crossed the point of no return! And we’re not the only ones defying Hogye Meng—don’t worry!”
Yeop Hyeon nodded.
“Good. Then I’ll gather all of Cheongju’s martial artists. With your firm support, Cheongju won’t end up like Cheonglanju!”
“May it be as you say!”
“It will be!”
Yeop Hyeon replied earnestly, then departed.
Sa Do-myeong watched his retreating figure for a moment, slowly closing his eyes and murmuring.
“Please don’t disappoint us…… And Hogye Meng……”
His expression twisted ferociously.
The head of the Sado family killed at Manggu Mountain had been his son.
On the road to Jeoguk.
Yeop Hyeon’s mouth was grinning from ear to ear.
‘Ten billion extreme-grade spiritual stones! Ten billion!’
With this wealth, he could do anything he wanted. Restore Gyeok Ok Tower, recruit warriors, buy weapons.
Arriving at Jeoguk’s imperial city in high spirits, Yeop Hyeon was greeted by none other than the Chang Lan Dao Soldiers.
Spotting him, the Chang Lan Dao Soldiers bowed in unison.
“We pay respects to the Dean!”
Yeop Hyeon raised his hand with a smile.
“We’re returning to Gangguk!”
As Yeop Hyeon was about to leave the city with the soldiers, a woman rushed out from within like an arrow.
It was Cheok Bal-eon.
Before Cheok Bal-eon could speak, Yeop Hyeon leaped onto his Black Flame Horse and yanked the reins. In an instant, over a hundred Black Flame Horses vanished from her sight.
Cheok Bal-eon could only stand there, gazing endlessly after them.