Chapter 193
Chapter 193
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 193
Chapter Title: Black Dragon Gate (4)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
*Whooosh. Crackle.*
Though ranked at the bottom, this was the internal energy befitting one of the Seven Hegemons, a rank just below the Ten Great Masters.
*Fwoosh!*
As I was briefly admiring it, his internal energy surged even more powerfully.
*Crackle. Fizz.*
My meridians screamed as cracks began to form in my pressure points.
‘As expected.’
They say old ginger is the spiciest.
Even after drinking three bottles of the Frost Yin Elixir, the power of age was not to be underestimated.
Blood and sweat poured down Yeom Han-baek's crimson face like a waterfall.
It seemed he planned to surge forward one more time.
If he pushed just a little bit more, he could shatter my precious dantian in my lower abdomen.
Of course.
“Die, you son of a bitch!”
*Thwack!*
His face would be shattered first, though.
*Thwack!*
The headbutt sent him staggering.
But even with his nose and most of his facial bones shattered, the man didn't give up.
With his mouth shut tight, he pushed his internal energy in even more forcefully.
“You tenacious bastard.”
I couldn't keep holding onto him forever.
In the end, I had to finish it here.
How?
In the most painful way possible.
*Crunch.*
I kicked up my front leg and struck the man's most precious part with all my might.
It was a pain that even the most tenacious man couldn't endure.
Moreover, the kicking techniques of the War King Thirteen Strikes boasted enough power to split a tree even without internal energy.
Naturally, a groan escaped Yeom Han-baek's lips.
“Kugh!”
*Whoosh!*
The pressure, which had been like a mountain, vanished in an instant.
As his concentration broke, the internal energy he had been pushing into my body returned to his own.
The problem was.
“Gwaaaargh!”
*Shwaaak!*
While it had entered slowly and steadily, it returned all at once.
Of course, his energy meridians couldn't withstand it.
“Hoo. That was tough.”
I regulated my internal energy and calmly watched him.
*Sizzzle.*
In that short time, the man had aged by at least ten years.
It was because the unabsorbed internal energy had evaporated into the air.
“You've turned into a completely shriveled old man, haven't you?”
“...Puhh...”
He looked completely helpless.
Even modern medicine couldn't save someone with ruptured energy meridians.
Unless the divine physician Hua Tuo himself were here to perform emergency treatment.
Otherwise, you could consider him dead.
*Step, step.*
I stepped on the blood he had vomited and approached.
“I'll listen to your last words, so if you have anything to say, say it now. Tell me where you stashed your money, and I'll bury you in a sunny spot. I'll even put up a tombstone.”
*Wheeze... Wheeze...*
The man made a wheezing sound and gestured for me to come closer.
Mo... ney...
At the word 'money,' I crouched down and put my ear near his mouth. Just then.
*Clink.*
“Hah!”
A sound like something bursting came from his sleeve.
A sound like that meant it was a hidden weapon with a mechanism nine times out of ten, but nothing happened.
It seemed the mechanism for firing the hidden weapon had been damaged in the recent battle.
“...”
To think a guy who'd be meeting King Yama in hell in just a minute or two would try to use a hidden weapon.
I was once again reminded that you can never let your guard down in the martial world.
“Damn you, bastard.”
*Thump.*
I stomped on his chest, crushing it, and looked around.
Yuk Hak approached, dragging the unconscious Gongson Jeok-san by the scruff of his neck.
“Good work.”
“What did *you* do? Anything at all?”
It really was a day where I did all the work.
***
In truth, there were several reasons for Yeom Han-baek's defeat.
First and foremost, the matchup.
From time immemorial, a guy who runs around sneakily with a single skewer has always been an easy opponent for a close-combat specialist like the great Jin Mujeon, wouldn't you say?
Furthermore, Yeom Han-baek didn't use his blade energy from beginning to end.
He only projected his protective aura against my War Dragon Energy.
It seemed he focused on speed, forgoing the use of blade energy which consumes a lot of internal energy.
This was nothing short of a godsend for me.
If his blade energy had flown at me when I opened up my chest, I would've taken a one-way express trip to the afterlife.
Dragging it into a battle of internal energy was also a major cause of his defeat.
Of course, it wasn't Yeom Han-baek's fault.
For a seasoned veteran of the martial world, there was no safer or more certain path.
The problem was that his opponent happened to be a practitioner of the War King Arts, a divine ultimate art that is also a physical art.
Befitting a divine ultimate art, it allowed me to buy time even against immense internal energy.
And befitting the ultimate physical art, I could move freely even during a clash of internal energy.
In the end, the choice he thought was most advantageous led him to his death.
To sum it up, the biggest reason for his defeat was that his opponent happened to be me.
Of course, I too was startled by his speed.
He was the fastest person I had ever met.
But who am I?
The inherently strong Jin Mujeon.
Being inherently strong, I was able to withstand his swift attacks and ultimately seize victory.
In other words.
‘I won because I'm strong.’
Thanks to that, everyone in the War King Gate went wild.
The atmosphere was like a club in Gangnam on a Saturday night.
Over six hundred disciples cheered at the sight of Yeom Han-baek's corpse.
“Ye-Yeom Han-baek!”
“It's the Blood Killing Hegemon, Yeom Han-baek!”
“The Gate Master brought back his body, which means...?”
“Our Gate Master defeated one of the Seven Hegemons!”
“Long live the Gate Master!”
“To think our Gate Master was one of the greatest masters in the world...”
In truth, there was a reason for their joy.
Because saying 'Our Gate Master is so-and-so from such-and-such region' is completely different from saying 'Our Gate Master is one of the Seven Hegemons'.
In the former case, you'd usually get a greeting like, 'Ah, is that so? I haven't heard much about him, but I hear it's a respectable sect.'
In the latter case, you'd receive praise like, 'Oh! I have long admired the fame of the War King Gate's Master. To meet members of the War King Gate like this! It is an honor for generations to come.'
Above all, having many masters is seen as a sign that the sect's secret arts are excellent.
Furthermore, the fact that the master of a newly founded gate defeated a supreme master of the Seven Hegemons meant that our War King Gate was a promising startup.
‘It'll be a problem if people start flocking to invest from all over...’
After all, I need to be selective with investors to maintain stable management control.
Anyway, I calmed the festive atmosphere and set about wrapping up the incident.
First of all.
“Carry out the sentence!”
Starting with expelling those who had rebelled against the War King Gate.
*Sob, sob, sob-*
Those being banished wailed outside the fortress gates.
“...Seeing this doesn't sit well with me.”
“But we can't keep them inside, can we?”
“That's true, but still.”
The soft-hearted Yu So-pyeong watched them with a conflicted gaze.
It was much better than a death sentence, but banishment was still a harsh punishment.
Considering the security and infrastructure of this era, the chances of dying as a stranger outside the fortress walls were high.
“Did you give them travel expenses?”
“They were given out earlier.”
“What about food?”
“Those leaving with their families were given enough to last three or four months. They were given extra travel money as well.”
I hadn't planned on giving out food, but seeing that most were leaving with their families, I decided to support them.
Strong martial artists could survive even with less to eat, but children couldn't.
“Good job.”
We guaranteed them the minimum right to survive.
We'll curse you, Master of the War King Gate-!
Well, it's not like the ones being kicked out would be grateful anyway.
Ah, Gongson Jeok-san killed himself by rupturing his own energy meridians.
It was a method of suicide rarely used because the process is so painful, so I was honestly a bit surprised.
It seemed he chose that method out of guilt for ruining his family.
The cleanup didn't end there.
The merchant guilds that supported them were still around.
In this era, I could apply the law of collective responsibility, but I had no intention of banishing them.
However, I believed a penalty must be given.
Reigning through fear isn't great, but letting things turn into a mess by being lenient is even worse.
Therefore, I summoned the masters of the Yuhwa, Yiseong, Cheonho, and Jihu Merchant Guilds.
The middle-aged men gathered in the room all wore grim expressions.
“Yuhwa Merchant Guild, two thousand nyang. Yiseong Merchant Guild, five hundred nyang. Cheonho Merchant Guild, five hundred nyang. Jihu Merchant Guild, three hundred nyang.”
“...”
On the surface, they hadn't done anything wrong.
They had only provided support secretly, as if it didn't count if they weren't caught.
“You provided a large sum of money to the leaders of the rebellion. Does anyone have anything to say about this?”
The master of the Yuhwa Merchant Guild spoke with a somber expression.
“As an influential figure of Hanzhong, what can I say after helping a rebellion that sought to ruin Hanzhong? However, I was only giving money to my own child as a father. I hope you will understand that there was no other malicious intent.”
“...You're quite eloquent. Is it the same for everyone else?”
The other three nodded.
“Alright, since there's no concrete evidence, I'll believe you. There will be no punishment. I won't confiscate your assets, and I won't banish you.”
At that, the faces of the other three, excluding the Yuhwa Guild Master, brightened.
“However, I have no intention of letting you back into the Merchant Guild. Also, don't even think about doing business in Hanzhong from now on. Stay at home as much as possible. You might attract some unnecessary 'misunderstandings' if you wander around.”
“That is too harsh! It wasn't even intentional...”
“I have a hundred mouths to feed. Please have some mercy!”
“How can you do this to us!”
I stood up from my seat and said.
“Even if you didn't support them with other intentions, the fact is you supported the rebels, right? And you knew things would likely turn out this way, given the atmosphere. Surely you're not going to say you didn't know that much?”
This is what you call willful negligence.
“If you'd prefer to be banished, I can arrange that.”
“...”
Amidst the grim atmosphere, the Yuhwa Guild Master stepped forward.
“What would you have us do?”
“Liquidate your assets and sell your guilds. Then go live lavishly somewhere else. You can even take care of the families that were kicked out today.”
He squeezed his eyes shut and nodded.
“Understood. I will follow the Gate Master's words.”
The others protested, but they gave up faster than I expected.
Because if they didn't follow my 'suggestion,' they'd be under house arrest for life.
*Clap.*
“Come in.”
*Screech.*
As I clapped, the door opened and two women entered.
Myo Hyang and Yang Ryeong.
After long negotiations, the two of them had formed a consortium to acquire these four merchant guilds.
A massive merchant guild, combining the infrastructure of the Merchant Guild and the information network of the Hao Gate, was about to be born.
“Shall we begin, then? Guild Masters.”
Her voice, unusually bright today, held the ferocity of a black panther.
***
Fifteen days later.
*Bang, bang. Pop.*
Celebratory fireworks were set off at a large estate on the outskirts of Hanzhong.
*Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap.*
Below, countless people clapped, offering their congratulations to the man of the hour.
“Congratulations, Gate Master!”
“My goodness, Lord Yongru, you honor us with your presence. Thank you.”
“My felicitations, Gate Master Bukgung.”
“Lord Bihwaru, you've come as well! Hahahaha.”
“Ahem, it seems you don't even see me.”
“Who would dare ignore the master of the Cheolmok Merchant Guild? Come over here. Let's drink until we pass out today.”
Perhaps because he had led a sect for a long time, he had the air of a great man.
Though not as much as me, of course.
Sensing my gaze, Bukgung Chang hurriedly ran over.
“Your Majesty...”
“Let's just be normal. Please.”
I raised my hand, cutting him off, and went inside.
I saw a table laden with all sorts of delicacies from land and sea.
This is one thing the martial world has over the modern world.
There's no fine dust.
That's why you can leave food out without worrying too much about dust.
‘The problem is that's the only thing.’
Anyway, as I followed Bukgung Chang's guidance and sat at the head table, three astonishingly beautiful women brought out liquor.
Even their figures were extraordinary; their ample chests were noticeable even through their loose clothing.
And from beside me came Bukgung Chang's voice.
“Hahaha, these are my wives.”
To think he's living with such beauties while some of us can't even get married!
His proud laughter made me want to unleash the Ultimate Death Force and slice him in two for a moment.
‘Hoo, it's a good day. I should hold back.’
I barely managed to calm myself and handed over the item I had brought.
“I tried my best to write it, but I don't know how well it turned out.”
It was the sign plaque he had personally requested.
He'd said it would be an honor for three generations if I wrote it myself, or something like that.
Thanks to that, there was no plaque on the main gate, even though it was the day of the opening ceremony.
“I will treasure it for the rest of my life!”
“...”
Bukgung Chang hastily unwrapped it, and his eyes immediately turned red.
I patted his shoulder.
“You were originally the Black Dragon Brigade, right? From now on, call yourselves the Black Dragon Gate. It sounds cooler than Black Snake Gate, doesn't it?”
And then.
*Thud!*
He slammed his head on the floor. No, he smashed it.
Bukgung Chang lifted his forehead, which was bleeding profusely, and shouted in a booming voice.
“This humble servant will pledge his life and loyalty to Your Majesty!”
“Give me a break.”
Excessive loyalty, stop