Chapter 118
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 118
Chapter Title: Crushing the Tang Leaf (4)
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Unhak's expression shifted through a rainbow of emotions as he gazed at the vivid sword aura blooming at the tip of Geum Sihyeon's blade.
Admiration at a realm that far surpassed the ordinary.
Disbelief that he couldn't easily accept as fact.
Anxiety from the confusion surging in his chest.
A smile he couldn't fully form.
Then came astonishment, regret, sorrow.
And again.
"Huaaaah! Heavens! Why does that bastard have both women and martial prowess?! This is unfair!"
A fierce inner demon struck Unhak's mind like a hammer.
Geum Sihyeon withdrew the starlight from his sword and patted Unhak's shoulder, a sly smile curling at his lips.
"Don't get too down. Your opponent's me. Me getting stronger is as natural as getting wet in the rain."
Unhak glared at Geum Sihyeon's solar plexus and threw a punch.
But.
Regrettably, the crude fist technique of a Peak lower-tier couldn't even graze the hem of a Superlative expert's robes.
"Impressive, Brother Geum! A truly splendid achievement! Guess I'll have to step up my game too!"
Nangong Hwi flashed a hearty, upright man's grin and gave Geum Sihyeon a genuine thumbs-up.
"Die, you Tang scum!"
"Heh heh heh... With that level of skill...?"
In this heartwarming scene of friends exchanging playful, lethal Golden Arm techniques.
"Tch. No wonder they seemed like a bunch of top-spinners. All the same breed."
Tang Wuliang's cold assessment put the perfect cap on the moment.
Thanks to the number of healers doubling, they swiftly treated all of today's patients.
Escorting Tang Wuliang, the three fools sat in a tavern, catching up over drinks.
"Brother Geum. How did you break through the wall?"
To Nangong Hwi's admiring question, Geum Sihyeon puffed up his chest, ready to boast confidently.
"That punk smashed my dantian, and my realm advanced."
Tang Wuliang's sharp ambush struck first.
The liquor Unhak spat out soaked Nangong Hwi's robes in a minor mishap.
"Elder, you can't just say it like that. It's true, but still."
"Woo woo, trash bastard, woo woo."
"Brother Geum, is that really true?"
Watching Geum Sihyeon, now demoted to trash, endure a barrage of verbal abuse, Tang Wuliang happily downed his cup.
Emboldened by Tang Wuliang's grand opening.
"That punk was a spectacle at the academy too. Switching women like clothes was routine, and whenever bored, he'd stare at their breasts── Ack, urk!"
"Die, die, you beggar scum!"
Geum Sihyeon's academy antics, hardly fabricated, were laid bare for all to see.
Laughter filled the table for a good while.
"So, I slammed my unbreakable conviction right into the ground there. The bandits freaked out and tried to hightail it, so I immediately──"
"What bullshit, beggar."
Unhak's tale started from a small village, where with a single steel staff, he'd not only handled the bandits threatening local security but crushed the shadowy Orthodox faction plot behind them.
"I got to witness a Mount Hua Sect heroine's swordsmanship by chance. Truly living up to the name! The faint plum blossom scent filled the air, and I couldn't help exclaiming, 'This must be the Twenty-Four Plum Blossom Sword Style!' But that wench──"
Nangong Hwi's biased, contrived tale of traveling with a Mount Hua heroine.
True to young men in their early twenties, it was laced with exaggeration and bravado.
But that's what made the stories perfect for the drinks, flowing leisurely and softening the mood.
Taking advantage of Unhak and Nangong Hwi's boisterous chatter.
Geum Sihyeon quietly handed his smartphone to Tang Wuliang.
A stranger's woman's image filled Tang Wuliang's eyes.
"...You fool, couldn't hold out and went whoring already?"
Guessing the feelings in Myo Narang's eyes to some extent, his reaction as a father was predictably displeased.
"It's Lady Tang Narin."
At Geum Sihyeon's follow-up.
Tang Wuliang lost all composure, snatching the smartphone and staring blankly at the screen.
"Heh, heh heh, heh heh heh...."
Laughter mixed with myriad emotions overflowed the table.
Geum Sihyeon quietly refilled Tang Wuliang's cup.
Half a shichen later.
Unable to contain his emotions, he'd downed cup after cup.
Forgetting momentarily that his poison tolerance was shattered, Tang Wuliang passed out snoring.
Geum Sihyeon, the expert at wrecking old men's livers with booze, casually tossed Tang Wuliang into the inn's bedroom.
The three set off running again.
Of course, sobering up like a proper man wasn't an option; the drinking parade continued with pour after pour.
"Beggar. Brother Nangong. Could you help me out a bit?"
After much deliberation.
Geum Sihyeon cautiously shared the Crushing the Tang Leaf plan with his two friends.
From Yunnan to now.
Having heard a brief rundown of Geum Sihyeon's journey and current situation, the two men's response was firm.
"If that's chivalry for you, Brother Geum."
"The Nangong sword never bows before injustice. What's wrong must return to its place."
Despite belonging to the Nine Great Sects and Ten Great Clans.
Geum Sihyeon smiled warmly at Unhak and Nangong Hwi's ready agreement without hesitation, raising his cup.
Soon, three cups clinked with a clear ring.
Right after the toast.
"But in the end... if Brother Geum can't beat the Poison King, doesn't the whole plan fall apart? Isn't it too reckless...?"
Unhak voiced his concern.
But to that 'You're gonna lose, right?' kind of question, Geum Sihyeon flashed a confident smile and declared.
"I'll win."
Major clans each have their own decision-making processes.
In the Nangong Family, the patriarch wielded near-absolute power based on his unquestioned authority.
The Tang Family of Sichuan was a bit more open to various voices than the Nangong Family.
Not only did poison experts and hidden weapon experts walk divergent martial paths within the clan.
To incorporate the opinions of blacksmiths, healers, and others skilled in vital arts that sustained the Tang Family, even if not martial artists.
On the final night of the month.
They held regular meetings to balance diverse opinions on various agendas.
Of course.
"Any objections?"
"None."
Even the best systems can devolve over time.
This month's regular meeting was no exception.
It was being steered not by the patriarch, but by the Retired Patriarch.
Having wielded his influence freely over long years, it was only natural for the Poison King.
But.
Today was different from usual.
Normally, Patriarch Tang Woojun would offer neutral perspectives and point out issues alongside the Retired Patriarch's judgments.
Today, the patriarch simply sat quietly.
Those who usually spoke up frequently began sensing the anomaly.
How much time passed.
"How dare you think this is...!"
A commotion erupted outside the meeting hall.
All eyes turned to the entrance.
And soon.
Kiiiek──
The door opened.
"What?"
"Heh...."
"Jade Face Young Master...?"
Unmistakable to any Tang clansman.
A man in a jade mask stepped inside.
"Y-You bastard! How dare you barge in here!"
External Division Head Tang Hyuk lunged to subdue the intruder.
"Stand down. He's to be my son-in-law, so not an outsider."
Tang Woojun's voice, infused with inner power, rang out solemnly; he'd been silently observing until now.
At that thunderous declaration.
All gazes snapped to the Jade Face Young Master.
The eyes lingered briefly before shifting to Tang Woojun's one and only daughter──
Tang Narin.
"Ha uh, ha uh, uuuuh...."
Despite being fully briefed in advance.
Tang Narin, sitting veiled a short distance away, couldn't contain her surging embarrassment and bowed her head.
Silence meant affirmation.
Seeing her reaction confirm the patriarch spoke no falsehood, shock rippled across the Tang retainers' faces.
Undeterred, the Jade Face Young Master gave a light bow.
Then, raising his head.
His gaze clashed head-on with the Poison King's bored, condescending stare.
The mouth softly revealed beneath the mask parted gently to form words.
"Repay grace twofold, grudge tenfold. Today, I stand here as the Tang Family's prospective son-in-law──and to settle an old score."
At the same time.
Tang Wuliang, Unhak, and Nangong Hwi, who were supposed to head to the Tang Family per Jade Face Young Master──Geum Sihyeon's plan.
But the moment they entered a peculiarly quiet alley in the city.
"Still clinging to life, eh, Tang Wuliang. If you'd just died then, you wouldn't disgrace the clan."
"...Aren't you the ones tarnishing the Tang name?"
They ran into masked figures blocking the way.
In this powder-keg situation.
"This is Tang Family business. You two young heroes, stay out of it."
The masked leader's voice rang cold.
But Unhak and Nangong Hwi stepped forward instead, shielding Tang Wuliang.
"I'm Unhak, successor of the Beggars' Sect. Harm this upright elder, and you'll have to go through me."
His unbreakable conviction stamped the ground, sending vibrations rippling.
"I am Nangong Hwi of the Nangong Family. Likewise, I can't stand by while an upright elder is harmed for doing right. Don't blame my merciless blade."
The Crescent Palace Sword, freed from its sheath and bathed in moonlight, gleamed with clear conviction in Nangong Hwi's hand.