Chapter 123
Chapter 123
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 123
Chapter Title: Dragon-Slaying Gate
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Fifteen days since the start of the "Make Hanzhong Clean" campaign.
Just as Myo Hyang had said, the number of merchants visiting Hanzhong increased.
‘How do rumors spread so fast in a world without group chats…?’
Thanks to this, not only the merchants of the Hanzhong Merchant Guild but also the inns, taverns, and restaurants were screaming with joy from the overflow of customers.
It was a kind of butterfly effect triggered by the "Make Hanzhong Clean" campaign.
“Good.”
Looking down from the fifth floor, the top level of the branch fortress, at the vibrant energy of the marketplace, I couldn't help but nod.
Seeing everyone smiling because of me was truly rewarding. This must be the life of an upright official.
‘The day I can live in splendor back in Goryeo isn't far off.’
The success of the merchant guild was my success. The day I return home in glory was just around the corner.
As I was looking down with such a pleased heart, something happened.
“What’s that?”
A strange sight caught my eye.
The branch members of the security squad, responsible for maintaining order, were dragging in a line of men.
And these were men of imposing stature, who looked like they knew how to throw their weight around.
*Thud. Thump.*
I leaped down and asked the branch member at the very front.
“Are they underworld thugs?”
“Gasp! Nine Dragons! Yes, sir!”
“Hmm… What crime did they commit to be brought in?”
The lives of underworld thugs were mostly the same.
Most made a living through illegal activities, like collecting protection money in entertainment districts or running gambling dens.
Despite that, unless there was a special reason like the Jo Merchant Guild incident, the Outer Hall didn't bother them.
It was because we knew they would just pop up again even if we wiped them out.
In that case, it was better to guide the existing underworld figures to live a more moderate life.
In the world of Murim, even underworld thugs served a purpose to some extent.
Take protection money, for instance. Surprisingly few people resisted paying it.
Once they took the money, those thugs would be the first to rush in when an unexpected incident occurred, and they would stand their ground even if a master appeared.
Whether for the sake of face or credibility, if they lacked the strength, they would throw their bodies on the line to protect the person who paid them.
In modern terms, you could think of them as a private security company.
Of course, some extorted excessive amounts of money or caused major problems like human trafficking and smuggling, but that was a story for the few who had gone too far.
In other words, it was unlikely that the dozens of underworld thugs being dragged in now were the ones who had gone too far.
Sure enough, the branch member who had captured them answered with a troubled expression.
“It’s not so much that they committed a specific crime… We are arresting the underworld figures in the city under the orders of the Security Squad Leader.”
“The Security Squad Leader?”
The Security Squad Leader was the third-in-command of the Hanzhong branch, following the Branch Head and the General Manager.
For reference, the fourth and fifth in command were the Strike Squad Leader and the Reconnaissance Squad Leader.
An underworld thug who overheard our conversation shouted with a resentful expression.
“Is this the way of the Hanzhong branch, arresting innocent people?!”
“Will you not be quiet?!”
*Smack!*
The branch member kicked the face of the man who had yelled.
He must have used his internal energy, as blood burst from the protesting thug’s mouth and he lost consciousness.
The excessive response made me frown instinctively, but I couldn't intervene. Figuring out what was going on came first.
“Alright. Carry on.”
“Yes, sir!”
I immediately went to find Geum Ja-hwan, the team leader of the Anti-Corruption Team and my unofficial secretary.
He replied calmly, as if he had expected my arrival.
“Did you come because of the commotion outside?”
“How did you know?”
“I was already keeping an eye on it.”
Geum Ja-hwan glanced around before continuing.
“It seems the Security Squad Leader’s pockets have grown light. Since he can no longer receive bribes from the merchants, he must be thinking of shaking down the underworld thugs to make up for it.”
“What?”
“According to the rumors, he demanded tribute from the underworld gangs. He’s arresting the ones who refuse to pay.”
Demanding tribute just because he couldn't get bribes anymore.
And from underworld thugs, who were treated as quasi-martial artists.
“Does that bastard have two or three lives?”
This was precisely why one avoided those who had gone too far.
You never knew what they might do.
“...He seems to be trusting in your reputation, General Manager. As long as the great Fighting Dragon is at the branch, no one would dare touch it without considerable resolve.”
“Smart.”
“It’s a scheme modeled after the fox borrowing the tiger's might.”
“Hmm…”
Underworld thugs were still underworld thugs. Arresting them wasn't wrong.
Even I couldn't just beat up the Security Squad Leader without any evidence.
“Things are about to get pretty noisy, aren’t they?”
“Yes, but since it's not an act that specifically harms the branch, it was difficult to proceed with an investigation.”
True, I couldn't launch an internal investigation just for arresting some underworld thugs.
“Alright. I’ll look into this separately, so you can head home.”
“You don’t have to…”
“You need to go home early to be loved by your wife.”
“I am still unmarried, sir.”
“You’re twenty-eight and still not married?”
In this era, most men married before they turned twenty.
Being in one's late twenties was very late.
And this was Geum Ja-hwan, a man from the Gold Dragon Hall, even if from a collateral branch.
He must have saved up a good amount of money, yet he still wasn't married.
“This guy. Could it be?”
*Does he like men?*
“...I don't know what you're imagining, but I feel strangely displeased. I simply haven't had the time to marry.”
Geum Ja-hwan stood up with a sullen expression.
It seemed I had unintentionally hurt him.
‘I’ll buy him a drink tomorrow to smooth things over.’
* * *
A short while later.
I went out to the entertainment district to gather evidence.
Although it wasn't a metropolis like Chengdu, Tai'an, or Anhui, Hanzhong was a city with a lot of traffic, so its entertainment district was developed to a level similar to those of large cities.
I kept a low profile, leaping across the tops of buildings and observing the movements of the security squad members.
It was to catch them the moment anything suspicious happened.
I searched every corner of Hanzhong for four hours.
‘Damn it.’
Nothing turned up.
The security squad members didn't arrest any more thugs and acted strictly by the book.
It seemed word of my interest during the day had reached the Security Squad Leader's ears.
Otherwise, there was no way the patrolling branch members would be so disciplined.
After all, the true pleasure of patrol duty was holing up somewhere for a drink and a meal if nothing was going on.
If the Security Squad Leader was trying this hard to hide it, it would be difficult to dig any deeper.
‘Should I just go and beat him until he confesses?’
I briefly considered taking a shortcut, then shook my head.
Unlike the Strike and Reconnaissance Squads, which had disobeyed orders, there was no clear justification for disciplining the Security Squad Leader.
If I grabbed him without a proper reason and he didn't confess, the problem would become serious.
Dozens of branch members might send letters of complaint to the main fortress, claiming I was harassing a subordinate who was just working hard.
‘The thought alone is horrifying.’
For me, who was already on bad terms with the Disciplinary Corps, it would be the worst-case scenario.
‘I have no choice.’
I would have to take my time and wait for an opening.
* * *
The next day.
*Chatter, chatter.*
When I came to work, the underworld thugs who had been arrested yesterday were tied up on the floor of the training ground.
Every one of them was shouting at the top of their lungs, most of them protesting their innocence and demanding to know why they had been captured.
“...What is this?”
“The Security Squad Leader has gathered the arrested thugs, saying he will interrogate them.”
After a short wait, the Security Squad Leader appeared. Seeing me, he hurried over and saluted.
“Nine Dragons!”
“Aren't you overdoing it?”
He shrugged his shoulders and said.
“As you said, General Manager, this is for a clean and just Hanzhong, so I am not overdoing it. Rather, I am doing what is only natural.”
“Is that so?”
“Imagine it. How much better would Hanzhong be if the underworld thugs disappeared?”
These were the kind of people who did business right in front of Mount Song, where the great Shaolin was located.
Even if we wiped out all the underworld sects in Hanzhong now, it was obvious that others would move in from different regions before long.
If anything, the likelihood of them acting even more viciously to establish their territory would only increase.
There was no way this man, who had spent his entire life on the streets of Hanzhong, wouldn't know that.
“You think so?”
“Yes. I am certain.”
Of course, since I had no way to deal with him right now, I patted his shoulder and said.
“Give it a try. But don't expect me to get involved if something you can't handle happens, got it?”
“...Of course.”
“Well then, good luck.”
“Yes, Nine Dragons!”
As I entered my office, screams began to echo from all directions.
Interrogation in the Murim, after all, involved violence.
I didn't know for sure, but by the time the interrogation was over, half of the dozens of thugs tied up in the training ground would be crippled.
“...Are you just going to watch?”
Geum Ja-hwan, who had followed me into the office, asked.
“Let him be. Isn't he just catching the thugs who suck the blood of the common people?”
“Even so, I say this because it seems a bit too harsh.”
“Just wait. It will resolve itself.”
As I spoke while flipping through the documents that had come in yesterday, Geum Ja-hwan tilted his head in confusion.
“Do you think masters only exist among the Five Supreme Masters of the world?”
“What do you mean by that…”
“You’re so dense… Think about it.”
Just as I was about to explain it to Geum Ja-hwan.
“Huh? Already?”
An unusual aura was felt from outside the main gate.
Geum Ja-hwan must have felt it too, as he quickly stuck his head out the window.
A dozen men leaped over the wall and entered the branch fortress.
Every one of them exuded a powerful aura, seeming to be beyond the first-rate level.
The man standing in the center, in particular, seemed to have surpassed the peak level, judging by his aura.
However.
*Clang, clang, clang. Clang.*
“Who are you?!”
“How dare you! Do you have a death wish, coming here?!”
The forces of the Hanzhong branch were also formidable.
Dozens of warriors leaped out like tigers.
“We are from the Dragon-Slaying Gate. Who is Security Squad Leader Bae Ja-hyeok?”
Hearing the name Dragon-Slaying Gate, the waiting branch members flinched.
‘Dragon-Slaying Gate?’
It was the first time I'd heard the name, but for some reason, it sounded familiar.
Anyway, this was what I was about to tell Geum Ja-hwan.
They might be at the bottom of the barrel, but these were underworld thugs who had been rolling around in the Hanzhong Murim for decades.
How many of them would have connections to masters?
One thing that was unexpected, even for me, was this.
‘They came here announcing their sect’s name? When they should be storming in with masks on?’
The fact that they had revealed the name of their sect.
I couldn't tell if they were courageous or just reckless.
No matter how mild the Nine Dragons Fortress was for a righteous sect, it was still a nationwide gang that would chase you to the ends of Hainan to take your head if a grudge was formed.
‘They must be people who adhere to the righteous path.’
It seemed they planned to push through with justification and martial arts.
Thus began the battle of justifications.
“Barging in like this is a confession that you are the ones behind the Hanzhong underworld, is it not?”
“We are merely here to question why innocent people have been captured.”
“Innocent underworld thugs? I've never heard such nonsense!”
“Then tell us. What crime did they commit to deserve being tortured like this?”
“The crime of sucking the blood of the people of Hanzhong.”
“Do you have proof? Or is there anyone who has been harmed?”
“Ha! We’ve been giving you a pass because you’re a so-called righteous sect established in Hanzhong, but you’re really climbing all over us. What are you all doing? Kill those bastards right now.”
At the Security Squad Leader's command, the branch members raised their weapons one by one and charged toward the warriors of the Dragon-Slaying Gate.
And then.
*Pow! Whack!*
“Don't kill them! Today, I will seize the Security Squad Leader and question him thoroughly!”
The man who appeared to be the leader of the Dragon-Slaying Gate initiated the battle by shattering the jaw of a warrior who rushed at him.
And watching the fight, I couldn't help but be astonished.
“Dragon-Slaying Thirteen Strikes!”
The martial art performed by the warriors of the Dragon-Slaying Gate was the Dragon-Slaying Thirteen Strikes, the origin of the War King Thirteen Strikes.