Chapter 232
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 232
Chapter Title: Chapter 232
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 232
Chapter Title: Present Democracy (3)
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Even faced with the outrageous audacity of a mere junior kicking out his senior, I had no choice but to slink out of the room without mounting a single shred of resistance.
Standing in the corridor.
I replayed the scene that had just burned itself into my eyes.
No, but really, this makes no damn sense.
It's not like it can't be explained without Jade Transformation Preservation...
I dug out the memories of my past life from the vault where I'd carefully stored them away, pulling them out for the first time in ages.
What I knew about Baek Liyeon...
Was far less than I'd imagined. Almost nothing.
This isn't my fault.
Think of it as a game, not reality.
Even if the performance is S-rank, who'd bother raising a male character?
Such a thing doesn't exist in Geum Sihyeon's dictionary.
Probably. Or maybe not.
Of course, if you're a total min-maxer, you might want to slot in the meta picks for your party. I get that much.
But no matter how busted the stats, who'd dive into that character's wiki and smash the [spoiler] button?
And when you're already swamped grinding affection with the waifus, why bother with the dudes? Wastes perfectly good gifts.
......
Applying gamer logic... hmm.
A bit of clarity washed over my mind.
In that case.
The lack of an Adam's apple, the oddly petite height, the slender frame, the thin forearms, the voice that shifted tones at will, the face that went beyond androgynous into outright delicate...
None of it was a side effect of the eunuch arts...?
- Haha! Your pecs are bulging nicely again today, junior! Been hitting the iron?
That springy give when I channeled Big Show and slammed a forehand chop right into his chest.
- A real man can't go all soft and slouchy over something like that!
Whenever he'd spend the whole day hunched over with a grumpy scowl for reasons known only to him, that springy bounce when I'd smack his ass on the spot.
......
Springy texture.
Yeah.
A bit too springy for a guy...
The vague unease I'd cowardly hidden under the shadow of the eunuch arts all this time exploded at once, slamming into my frontal lobe.
Creeeak—
Before I could even sort out my thoughts.
The door swung open, and Baek Liyeon stepped out into the hall.
Slender shoulders I could wrap one arm around without effort, just like always.
A chest that dipped unnaturally concave for pecs, without even a hint of a sternum ridge.
Below a wasp-thin waist, hips sturdy enough to handle twins with ease.
"...Junior. Tell me I just saw wrong. Must be the booze."
I clung to that last thread of hope, but...
"...Sorry for hiding it."
Baek Liyeon emerged, reining in her agitation, bowing her head matter-of-factly in apology for the long deception.
It only shattered my denial completely.
Fuck.
No.
Wait, hold on just a second.
Nothing's really changed, right?
I'm no sexist.
The fact that my cherished junior wasn't some airhead from the start won't crumble the camaraderie and friendship we've built overnight.
Yeah.
It's all about mindset. Innate nature and looks have nothing to do with it.
"Mm. Definitely too much booze. Someone as sturdy and rock-solid-pec'd, the epitome of manliness like Liyeon junior looks as handsome and cool as ev—urk!"
"Just drop dead, senior."
Th-this crazy junior's kicking me right in the crotch...!
After that day.
Liyeon was radiating chill like puberty and her period had hit all at once, her whole body screaming "talk to me and die."
Petty for a "man."
Her changed tone stung my heart; she felt like a stranger, and the sky loomed dark like rain was coming.
But.
"Let's go."
"Sure."
"...But why's Liyeon junior so damn gloomy?"
"Don't ask. Don't even think about it. You'll get hurt."
I decided to tackle the problem at hand first.
Leveraging Ten Thousand Gold Treasury Fortress's power, ringing gongs nonstop and dragging the Beggars' Sect's dignity through the mud would be a breeze from here on out.
But even if I did.
When Unhak became sect leader, the issue was he'd be a tad too low-tier for me to put to good use.
Worst case, the sect splits in half?
My Unhak coin gets delisted.
"Please don't say that crap to his face..."
"It's meant for his ears."
"But can we even meet the master... Dragon Head Leader? I'm branch staff, so no issue, but you're an outsider."
"Hm?"
Unhak, oh Unhak.
How are you this goddamn dense?
I shot him a pitying look, and he bristled indignantly, but.
I held up a finger.
"Don't raise your voice like that."
His indignation morphed into sheer exasperation.
"Who do you think I am?"
"A Harmony Realm master—you've said it at least thirty times."
Tsk tsk.
Still chained to petty realm obsession; he's no better than a peak scrub.
What's a mere realm good for?
"I'm the direct disciple of the Divine Doctor, the next in line after the man himself."
The true measure of status in the martial world.
Those who can save lives versus those who can't.
Those who can take lives versus those who can't.
I fell squarely into the former for both.
Was a life-flashing-before-your-eyes montage always this endlessly long?
Dragon Head Leader Hong Jonggyeon slumbered in an interminably deep dream.
From his beggar days begging for scraps as a child before joining the sect, to leaping into the jianghu with a single staff, to charging into the righteous-demonic war full of youthful zeal.
And in the end, after every conflict, it was always the common folk who suffered.
Just spawning Second Hong Jonggyeons and Thirds by the dozen.
After tasting the jianghu's cruelty firsthand, the Dragon Head Leader's goal never wavered.
He couldn't stop everyone from becoming beggars.
But he'd shelter every last wandering soul in the Beggars' Sect's embrace.
And if they wanted to fill their bellies, to reclaim their lives, the sect would gladly be their foundation.
Dozens of years like that.
The sole reason he hadn't dipped a toe into the distant River of Three Roads, even in his dreams?
The Beggars' Sect.
How long had he drifted through the past he couldn't let go, the present he clung to, the uneasy future?
Suddenly.
The Dragon Head Leader opened his eyes.
"L-Lea-Leader...!"
In his hazy vision.
Blood didn't bind them, but the temperament was uncannily similar—his good-hearted idiot disciple and branch staffer, Unhak.
And.
"Coughing fit, Leader?"
A very young man, wearing an exceedingly feminine expression as he repeatedly jabbed true qi and acupuncture needles into his body.
The face looked familiar.
Unhak's close friend, for sure.
The third son of Ten Thousand Gold Treasury Fortress, who cursed up a storm with his mouth but harbored deep sentiments within.
And beyond that.
When you pieced together all the vital intel meant solely for the leader's eyes...
He'd studied under luminaries like Wi Ji-ryang and Seo Dohee.
Won the Mind-Image Sword Debate tournament in his youth, reached Harmony Realm at a tender age—a once-in-a-millennium genius.
Even handed Wudang the key to refined Yang Spirit Art and taught Mount Tai the Falling Petal Swordsmanship.
And his connections?
The Heavenly Demon of the era, betrothed to the young cult leader.
Prospective son-in-law to Sichuan Tang Family and Moyong Family.
A comet streaking across the jianghu, leader of newborn Geumhyeon Sect shaking one-tenth of the world's wealth—and betrothed to Southern Barbaric Beast Palace's lord, now subjugated by his sect.
And.
Born under the Ziwei Star's fate, the sworn foe of Azure Heaven Society.
Geum Sihyeon.
.
.
.
His condition was already far past saving, with innate true qi leaking from his body by the second.
- That's why I adjusted it to circulate more efficiently within. Still, defying fate is no easy task... but he'll retain his dignity until the very end.
Geum Sihyeon spoke with profound regret, but.
The Dragon Head Leader was satisfied.
A life already forfeit.
Even a few days' reprieve—how precious could those days be?
"These bastards, thinking they can pull their shit just 'cause the leader's down!"
He vented all his pent-up rage from bedridden days with Dragon Staff Eighteen Palms to his heart's content.
"Gah, you rascal. Why aren't you drinking?"
"Master... even so, the booze..."
"Grain liquor, grain liquor! Tch, how's a young buck so damn uptight?"
"Haha, tell me about it. Leader, this lowly junior of the jianghu humbly offers you a drink with honor."
He got to booze it up properly before the end.
He'd huffed out the precious buzz with innate qi lest he ascend without waking next day, but still.
Even so.
"Unhak."
"Yes, Master."
"Sorry to leave you like this."
The Beggars' Sect's grand tide was too fierce now—even if the Dragon Head Leader leaped from his coffin, he couldn't stem it.
The elders' influence had dominated the leadership selection, and most were from the Righteous Faction to boot.
The elders tied to Azure Heaven Society weren't budging an inch.
No way they'd let slip the golden chance for intel only the leader could gather and wield.
"No... How could a disciple covet the leader's seat? Just escorting you on your final path like this is more than enough for me..."
Unhak's voice caught, but.
"Tch, Leader. You raised your disciple wrong."
"Hm?"
The leader's eyes narrowed at Geum Sihyeon's interjection.
Thinking he'd been too kind, now spouting nonsense?
"Never mind narrow dreams for a man—how can he spout such weakness, failing to inherit even your will? Embarrassing, even as his friend."
"...What are you getting at?"
"The Beggars' Sect isn't a faction for the leader to lord over—it's a haven for the powerless to lean on. Clinging to that seat, is that a beggar's way?"
At Geum Sihyeon's words.
In that instant, not just the Dragon Head Leader but Unhak looked like they'd been smacked upside the head.
Thinking about it, it was true.
The bias that only he or his disciple could lead right.
A fresh wave of admiration surged.
Despite enmity with Azure Heaven Society, how could he offer such counsel—knowing it might turn the blade on his own neck?
But Geum Sihyeon's words didn't end there.
"Thus, the Beggars' Sect is for the lowliest, not for fattening those at the top. So why decide its leader without the voices of ordinary sect members?"
"Every elder has their own faction—"
"The entrenched can't represent the masses. Rank-one beggars follow rank-two, who follow rank-three, all funneling into points of power, authority, and cronyism. But is that truly everyone's will?"
The Dragon Head Leader, now serious-faced, nodded in agreement.
"No. At least the young beggars doubt the Righteous Faction's moves... but without Unhak, their voices wouldn't reach."
Geum Sihyeon smirked inwardly, satisfied.
And.
Finally voiced what he'd prepared.
"Then naturally, the Dragon Head Leader's selection must be fair. Not elders deciding in some luxury parlor, but converging every sect member's opinion."
"How?"
"One vote for rank-one beggar. Same for rank-four. Branch staff too. Ever heard of voting?"
After that.
The Dragon Head Leader's mind heated up at this bizarre theory he'd never heard in his life.
But after rounds of debate, rebuttals, and crushing defeats.
"...Indeed, that would be far fairer."
The Dragon Head Leader was thoroughly convinced deep in his heart.
"...What the hell are you scheming, Geum Sihyeon?"
On the way back after drinks with the Dragon Head Leader.
Unhak grumbled, utterly unable to read Geum Sihyeon's intentions no matter how he racked his brain.
"Hm, you'll find out soon enough. First, time for inspection."
Geum Sihyeon showed no sign of explaining.
Unhak, listening beside him, grasped what he meant well enough.
Even with voting.
Could he really win?
Branch staff led no factions from the start.
His support base was woefully thin.
Regardless of Unhak's muttering, Geum Sihyeon strode boldly into a street lined with warehouses.
Stopped at one entrance.
And flung the doors wide.
"Hm, still short."
Unhak gawked at the sight before him.
Straw sandals piled high, jars of cheap liquor, and unidentifiable slips of paper everywhere.
What the hell is all this?
"Ah, this?"
Geum Sihyeon looked bored.
"As you see: rubber... er, straw sandals, murky brew, and ballots."
"...And where do you use all that?"
He couldn't hide his dismay at Unhak's ignorance.
But explaining was basic courtesy, so.
Geum Sihyeon murmured shortly.
"Democracy."
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