Chapter 104
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 104
Chapter Title: Things I Want to Discard
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Cheon Taesan had already set up a barrier in the room before attempting to draw in the spirit energy from the air, ensuring no one could spy on what was happening inside.
Even if they did detect something, it would only be the barest hint, so he wasn't too worried.
His barrier was formed from a fusion of internal energy and spirit energy—one that even experts at the Present Heaven Sect hadn't been able to pierce.
The warrior tasked with monitoring the scholar staying in the VIP quarters under the family head's orders was flustered by the barrier enveloping the scholar's room.
'Why won't it break through?'
The Tang Clan had developed a technique capable of piercing even a master's protective aura.
After years of research into such methods, they had devised a way to sharpen their energy like a needle to drill through barriers.
Door-Breaking Qi Needle.
This was one of the Tang Clan's signature techniques.
Thanks to it, they had been able to eavesdrop on guests in the VIP quarters.
Yet the scholar's barrier refused to yield.
'What do I report?'
If he admitted he couldn't pierce the barrier and had no idea what the scholar was doing inside, the family head wouldn't forgive him.
But failing to report out of fear would lead to punishment far worse than mere reprimand.
The Tang Clan's hidden watcher headed to the family head's hall with a grim expression.
Tang Myeong listened to the empty report for a while before crossing his long legs.
"So, you're saying the scholar's barrier blocked you completely? You couldn't learn a single thing about what he was doing in there?"
"My apologies."
"Not even with the Door-Breaking Qi Needle?"
"My apologies."
Unexpectedly, Tang Myeong wore a lenient expression.
"No, no. It was my fault for ordering you to monitor a scholar whose barrier even the Door-Breaking Qi Needle can't pierce."
Bam!
The subordinate slammed his head to the floor.
"Don't do that. I meant it sincerely. I do have a conscience, you know. I'm not the type to shamelessly demand victory against someone out of my league. You pierced the barriers of Wudang and Mount Hua elders, so the fact that you couldn't get through this one gives me plenty of information already. It means he's trickier than those Wudang and Mount Hua elders. That's enough. Withdraw. Pull all our people from the VIP quarters for the time being."
"Understood, Family Head."
Tang Myeong flicked his hand, and the watcher retreated.
"He's even more of a big deal than I thought."
As Tang Myeong spoke, a middle-aged man who had been standing silently beside him nodded.
"I thought he got lucky killing one of the Demonic Cult's Fourteen Commanders, but that doesn't seem to be the case. A barrier that withstands the Door-Breaking Qi Needle isn't something an ordinary person could create."
The middle-aged man resembled Tang Myeong somewhat, but he was the spitting image of Tang Jin-ok.
"Pae, Demonic Cult commanders are stronger than Murim Alliance elders. No one could kill them by sheer luck."
The middle-aged man was Tang Myeong's eldest son, Tang Pae.
"Father, are you really going to leave Ji-in as he is? He's growing more twisted by the day, becoming a disgrace to the family."
"That's why I invited Scholar Cheon, isn't it? We should give him one chance. If that doesn't work, we'll have to make a decision. For now, since Scholar Cheon has reformed those irredeemable wastrels, let's trust him."
Tang Pae responded calmly.
"I have high expectations for Scholar Cheon as well. I'm curious how he'll educate him."
A chilling glint flowed from Tang Pae's eyes.
In one of the Black Water Strongholds of Sichuan, a white-haired middle-aged man looked down at his prostrated subordinate.
"So, you're saying you couldn't even retrieve Commander Fragrance Eagle's body."
"My apologies, Commander."
"Where is Fragrance Eagle's body?"
The white-haired man looked in his forties but was actually over sixty.
His pure inner energy made him appear two decades younger.
"It's at the Sichuan Open Faction branch."
"If nothing else, we need to recover Fragrance Eagle's body and hold a proper rite. Otherwise, his resentment won't fade."
"Y-yes, that's right."
"And I hear the one who killed Fragrance Eagle was some scholar? Is that true? Tell me what you saw with your own eyes."
"Yes. The Fourteenth Commander clashed with the scholar bastard, and as they collided with the Heavenly Dragon Sword Energy..."
"The Heavenly Dragon Sword Energy of the Vault of Heaven Unfettered Sword Technique?"
"Yes."
"From the Nangong Family?"
"No. He's a Murim Alliance scholar who stayed briefly with the Nangong Family and recently settled in Gangseo, according to our intel."
"And he mastered the Vault of Heaven Unfettered Sword Technique?"
"Yes. He's the one who earned the moniker Scholar Divine Sword starting from Gangseo."
"Scholar Divine Sword? Quite the grandiose title. And he learned the Vault of Heaven Unfettered Sword Technique without even being from the Nangong Family. Makes you think, doesn't it?"
Demonic Cult Ninth Commander, White-Haired Fist Demon Shin Eung, let out a hearty laugh.
Shin Eung also had white hair, and he had long shared a sworn brother-sister bond with Fifth Commander Oh Ju-hyung, who had the same feature among the commanders.
Upon hearing of Oh Ju-hyung's death—known as Fragrance Eagle—the Demonic Cult Leader had planned to send the Tenth Commander, but the Ninth had volunteered and rushed to Sichuan.
He was an absolute master who could kill from a hundred paces away with his fist energy, akin to Shaolin's Hundred-Pace Divine Fist.
Originally the White-Haired Fist Demon, his unparalleled fist techniques had earned him the title Hundred-Pace Fist Demon.
"Where is the Third Young Master?"
"The Fifth Commander is looking after him."
"He was hit by the Tang Clan's Formless Poison, right?"
"Yes."
"Where is the Fifth Commander?"
"Even I don't know."
"Good. That's how we fool the enemy's eyes."
The Fifth, Ninth, Twelfth, and Fourteenth Commanders were the faction supporting the Demonic Cult Leader's third disciple, Mo Dong-gwak.
It was because their fathers had been close to Mo Dong-gwak's.
That was why they backed Mo Dong-gwak even when his faction was the weakest.
Being the most disadvantaged among the disciple factions, Mo Dong-gwak had eagerly taken on the mission to wipe out the Kunlun Sect remnants to rack up merits.
But passion alone couldn't navigate the treacherous murim world.
'Who could've predicted the Formless Poison?'
Shin Eung ground his teeth at the thought of the Tang Clan.
The Fifth Commander had originally been sent on the Leader's orders to eliminate the Kunlun remnants.
Yet instead of pursuing that, he was focused on treating the Third Young Master, which felt like things were going awry.
They hadn't expanded their influence—in fact, they couldn't even secure the Third Young Master's life.
That meant their own positions were at risk.
To avoid peril, they needed to move quickly.
"I have much to do. First, recover Fragrance Eagle's body for the rite, then offer that scholar's head as sacrifice on the altar. On top of that, secure an antidote for the Third Young Master... Do you think that's easy?"
"I-I will serve you with all I have, my lord."
"You're the one who failed to protect even Fragrance Eagle. How could I entrust my safety to the likes of you? Begone."
"Understood. I take my leave."
"Leave your head."
Not understanding at first, the man looked up—only to realize Shin Eung's fist was already flying toward his head.
Splatter!
His head exploded, and his body twitched before collapsing.
"Clean it up!"
Shin Eung, who had blasted the head with fist energy, addressed another subordinate.
"In a few days, when my prized boys arrive boasting of their prowess, we'll head to the Sichuan Open Faction branch."
"Your will be done."
Shin Eung clenched and unclenched his fist as he muttered.
"Scholar Divine Sword, eh... You'll pay dearly for killing Fragrance Eagle."
A sinister voice echoed through the hall.
For three days, I focused on circulating my energy.
Thanks to that, I easily reached the stage where I could fuse spirit energy and internal energy.
Once I could wield my sword as a flame sword, the Vault of Heaven Unfettered Sword Technique was on the verge of becoming the Flame Dragon Unfettered Sword Technique.
Unleashing sword strikes would make flames erupt from the blade—anyone seeing it would think it was a different sword art entirely.
After acquiring the evolved Samadhi True Flame, I completed the Nine Ghosts Soul Absorption Palm.
Using energy blended from spirit and internal forces, once ignited, the flames refused to go out easily.
I lit it with Samadhi True Flame and poured water on it, but it didn't extinguish.
I set clothes ablaze with Samadhi True Flame and emptied an entire teapot over them, yet they still burned.
Of course, I had the barrier up to prevent detection from outside.
If the Tang Clan had seen what I was doing, they would've been horrified.
"At this rate, I might even summon a flame dragon."
I hadn't tried summoning a full flame dragon yet, but maximizing the Samadhi True Flame made it seem possible.
Summoning one in the VIP quarters was too risky, so I held off.
'With this, I've mastered nearly all the martial arts left by Ghostly Scholar.'
Nine Ghosts Phantom Movement Technique, Nine Ghosts Four Spirits Sword Technique, Nine Ghosts Escape from White Ground, Nine Ghosts Bright Jade Heart Method, and now Nine Ghosts Soul Absorption Palm.
Now I could truly call myself Ghostly Scholar's successor.
The problem was that Ghostly Scholar hailed from the Righteous Three Thousand's Wusang Heaven.
I'd had no ties to Wusang Heaven so far, but if they learned I'd mastered Ghostly Scholar's arts, who knew how they'd react.
'That's why I use the Vault of Heaven Unfettered Sword Technique.'
I had no intention of getting entangled with some Righteous Three Thousand group.
Affiliating with any one place felt like shackles to me.
'Even if I use Ghostly Scholar's techniques, blending in fire energy should hide it. The nature is completely different.'
That was why I'd overlaid the Samadhi True Flame onto the martial arts.
So no one would recognize them.
"Scholar Cheon."
As I finished circulating my energy and drank tea with Yeoseol, a voice called from outside.
Tang Ji-in's voice.
Among the wastrels, he was the first to seek me out first.
I'd been wondering.
'Is Tang Ji-in really a wastrel?'
From what I'd observed briefly on my way to the Tang Clan, he seemed like a perfectly normal young man with sound judgment.
His extreme actions had simply branded him a wastrel.
'No action comes without reason. Something is turning Tang Ji-in into a wastrel. What could it be?'
"May I come in?"
When I didn't answer right away, Tang Ji-in asked again.
Yeoseol replied instead.
"You're my servant's servant. Come in."
"My goddess is here too."
"Please, enter."
Seeing how I'd grown accustomed to their embarrassingly flirtatious banter proved humans were creatures of adaptation.
"Scholar Cheon."
The moment he sat, Tang Ji-in's eyes gleamed like he was about to do something monumental.
"Have some tea first."
Whatever punishment he'd endured, his eyes were hollow and his face gaunt.
"You vanished for days—what were you up to?"
Yeoseol didn't know about his punishment.
"I was in the poison grounds. Spent three days with the venomous bugs."
"Must've been rough."
At Yeoseol's simple words, Tang Ji-in's eyes reddened.
'How could someone so sensitive be labeled a wastrel... So many questions remain.'
Tang Ji-in brought the teacup to his chapped lips and winced.
"Scholar, I can't just stand by and watch my sister marry a scum like Seop Hyun-rok."
"And?"
I played along, and he continued.
"I'll kill him."
"How?"
"With poison."
"Then everyone will know Tang Gongzi did it. Isn't that dangerous?"
"I'm already disowned anyway. And there shouldn't be more people like me. Even if I have to sacrifice myself."
"I see."
"Will you help? If you do, I won't act like a wastrel anymore."
"Is that how negotiations work?"
"It's plenty. You'd complete your mission, Scholar. I heard about you—what kind of man you are. Sounds impressive. Your reputation can't be ruined because of me, right?"
"I'm not the type to stake my life on mere reputation."
Yeoseol nodded.
"He's mistaken. It's not reputation—it's money he stakes his life on."
"Not that either."
"Sure it is?"
Yeoseol stared at me, and I scratched my chin.
"I've received quite a bit, so it's hard to deny."
I struck at the core.
"Why do you make yourself out to be a wastrel, Tang Gongzi? Why the self-flagellation?"
"You knew?"
"Impossible not to. You've never seen a real wastrel, so you wouldn't know."
Yeoseol took over.
"A true wastrel has no shame, no mercy, no consideration. Shameless as thick iron, selfish, arbitrary, and arrogant. But my servant lacks all that. He just loves women a bit too much."
Hearing such words from a young girl made Tang Ji-in give a wry smile.
"It's embarrassing to admit, but I despise my family and my kin. If no one was watching, I'd toss them away somewhere."
Yeoseol spat out her tea at that.
In her short life, she'd always seen family as pure happiness, so Tang Ji-in's confession was bound to shock her.
Realizing her mistake, Yeoseol muttered.
"Oh, this is just tears welling up because my servant's so pitiful. Don't misunderstand."
"Even your saliva is precious, so don't cry, my goddess."
Tang Ji-in sipped his tea, leaving it unclear if he was joking or serious.