Chapter 27
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: The Purpose of the Inspection Unit
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I had one question on my mind.
"So, does the White Tiger Unit team up with the Inspection Unit from the start whenever the Murim Alliance dispatches you?"
Wang Cheong shook his head.
"We got intel on the Demonic Cult thugs and chased them down. We only linked up with the Inspection Unit heading to Hefei midway. It wasn't a joint operation from the outset."
I'd assumed the White Tiger Unit had mobilized to support the Inspection Unit, but learning they'd set out for separate reasons and met up along the way made me tilt my head in confusion.
Wang Cheong spoke in a slightly disgruntled tone.
"We came to catch Demonic Cult rabble, and now it looks like we're stuck playing escort for the Inspection Unit."
The White Tiger Unit was one of the Murim Alliance's Six Great Units, a force that by no means bowed to the Inspection Unit's authority.
"Hm. Must be orders from the Alliance leadership."
By leadership, I meant the Elder Council.
Wang Cheong's mouth twitched like he wanted to say something—probably a curse—but held back.
As I chatted with Wang Cheong, I kept an eye on the girl named Yeowon.
Seeing that they hadn't taken any action against her confirmed my suspicions.
'The White Tiger Unit just mobilized blindly when the Demonic Cult showed up and tracked them here. They have no idea what her deal is.'
Wang Cheong glanced briefly at Jong Sobin and Hwayeong.
"I'd heard there were power shifts in the North Sea Ice Palace, but the Little Palace Lord on the run? Intel says the elders have seized control of the Ice Palace. Wonder if they can fend off the Blood Cult and Demonic Cult's ambitions. Looking at them, it reminds me of our own Murim Alliance."
He muttered it openly, not caring if I heard.
The Murim Alliance had long been rife with strife between the Alliance Lord faction and the Elder faction.
Now the elders held the upper hand, dominating the Alliance—which explained his lament.
Finishing his soliloquy, Wang Cheong turned back to me.
"Do you remember me, Scholar Cheon?"
Truth be told, more than a few in the Murim Alliance had been stripped of their clothes by my hand.
During my time in the Inspection Unit, I'd uncovered dozens of cases of corruption and misconduct, leading to audits.
But I had no recollection of Wang Cheong, White Tiger Unit leader.
"Have we crossed paths before, Unit Leader?"
"No. But do you remember Azure Dragon Unit Leader Jang Hojin, by chance?"
"Yes, of course."
I'd received a tip about Jang Hojin's corruption and investigated.
Right from the start, I spotted evidence suggesting he'd been framed and cleared his name.
Later digging revealed that the Black Tortoise Unit Leader had schemed to oust him.
I pursued it to the end, forcing the Black Tortoise leader into a dishonorable retirement from the Alliance.
"Truth is, Jang Hojin and I were thick as thieves. When he was framed and facing prison, I couldn't even help. But you stepped in, Scholar Cheon, and cleared him. I was truly grateful then. And I still am—thank you."
"You were close with Unit Leader Jang. How's he doing?"
We'd shared a drink or two after that.
"That hot-blooded guy's thriving as always. When I told him I was heading to Hefei, he asked me to pass on his regards."
I smiled, picturing the steadfast Jang Hojin.
With his bold personality, he was one of the few in the Alliance I actually liked.
Even during my probe into Elder Gal Woohun's corruption, he'd quietly lent a hand—we clicked well.
"The Deputy Inspector from the Inspection Unit will arrive in about an hour."
I'd expected the White Tiger and Inspection Units to arrive together when entering the safehouse.
"The Inspection Unit must be busy."
"We got intel that the Azure Dragon Sect is colluding with the Demonic Cult. We're investigating."
"The Azure Dragon Sect?"
I frowned.
The Azure Dragon Sect was a righteous sect affiliated with the Murim Alliance, based in Hefei.
Hefei was home to two major martial families, led by the Nangong Family—one being the Azure Dragon Sect, the other the Ha Family Manor.
'Right on cue, the Azure Dragon Sect colluding with the Demonic Cult and getting inspected?'
Something smelled fishy to me.
'The problem is, the Seven Stars energy I detected is there.'
The bearer of the Seven Stars energy I'd found was in the Azure Dragon Sect.
'What a coincidence.'
Missing out on their sole heir, Yi Mokseong, meant I might never find another with Seven Stars energy.
People with that energy weren't exactly common.
In my Inspection Unit days, I'd dealt with plenty of scoundrels, but Pang Soun was the only one whose roguishness stemmed from Seven Stars energy. The rest were just rotten to the core.
"Guess I need to pay the Azure Dragon Sect a visit."
Wang Cheong responded to my musing.
"You know the place well?"
"No. From my past investigations, they had no reason to collude with the Demonic Cult."
"The Deputy Inspector's bringing the Azure Dragon Sect's sect leader and his son here to the safehouse. Let's wait and see."
Dragging a small sect's leader and son to a safehouse showed the Inspection Unit's clout.
One wrong move, and they could be labeled Demonic Cult spies and slaughtered, so they'd bend over backward to clear their names.
'They were powerful back in my day, but their influence has grown even more.'
I asked Wang Cheong,
"Has the Inspection Unit's leader changed?"
"I believe it happened right after you left the Alliance, Scholar Cheon."
'Probably replaced with an Elder Council loyalist. Back then, the leader was Alliance Lord faction, so the elders kept them in check.'
I suspected systematic maneuvering by Goo Jinha and wanted to get to the bottom of it.
"Any documents on the Azure Dragon Sect?"
Wang Cheong looked troubled.
"The Inspection Unit gave me some since I need to know about the case. But you're not on duty anymore, Scholar Cheon..."
I noticed documents on the table he kept glancing at and cocked my head.
'Why does he keep looking there?'
Realizing I'd spotted it, he continued,
"Strictly speaking, I shouldn't, but if I'm tied up with other work for a bit and someone sneaks a peek, what can I do?"
I played along.
"True. How would you know, Unit Leader Wang?"
"Exactly. It'll take me about fifteen minutes to review the Demonic Cult and Blood Cult movements."
He left those unnecessary words for me and walked off.
'Maybe he senses something off too. Otherwise, a stickler for rules like him wouldn't let me see the files.'
My suspicion was simple.
Coming to nab Blood Cult and Demonic Cult goons, only to inspect the Azure Dragon Sect out of nowhere? It didn't add up.
'That's why they don't know about the Ice Sacred Body. If they did, the White Tiger and Inspection Units would act differently.'
It meant Goo Jinha was after something else.
I perched on a chair and rifled through the documents.
After skimming for fifteen minutes, I pieced together Goo Jinha's intent.
'Has Elder Gal Woohun's ghost followed me all the way here?'
My clash with Elder Gal Woohun had ended in mutual defeat.
He'd been forced to step down from his elder position, and I'd been assigned to rotational duty.
His corruption ran deep everywhere, but I hadn't imagined it reached Hefei.
And the Azure Dragon Sect, of all places.
According to the files, the Azure Dragon Sect had clashed with a faction backed by Elder Gal—a gang called the Lake Pavilion Gang, based around the vast Lake So.
Lake So bustled with tourists year-round, fueling thriving commerce.
The Nangong Family held about a third of the lake's business rights; the rest split among other gangs.
Lately, the Lake Pavilion Gang, with backing from Elder Gal's Jiangxi Gal Sect, had expanded aggressively.
The Azure Dragon Sect, with its own slice of Lake So turf, naturally clashed when encroached upon.
Gal Woohun had leveraged his elder status to bolster the Lake Pavilion Gang, cornering the Azure Dragon Sect.
After Gal stepped down, they'd reclaimed their territory.
'Flip to the back, and it's clear Gal Woohun rented out Alliance warriors to the Lake Pavilion Gang under the guise of supporting affiliate gangs, pocketing huge sums.'
But that evidence would elude most eyes—mine only because I knew where to look.
Once the Alliance warriors pulled out, the Lake Pavilion Gang crumbled under the Azure Dragon Sect's resurgence.
'Now they're framing them outright for Demonic Cult collusion to shrink the Azure Dragon Sect.'
The final file cited a tip that Yi Mokseong, sole heir of Sect Leader Yi Woong, was consorting with the Demonic Cult.
'Mokseong's a scoundrel, sure, but not a Demonic Cult collaborator.'
I knew from investigating with Nangong Mubaek.
'Perfect scapegoat since he's such a menace—no one to defend him.'
I approached Wang Cheong, standing a ways off.
"So the White Tiger Unit's dropping the chase on the Demonic Cult and Blood Cult?"
"Separate from Inspection Unit business, Team Three is tracking them discreetly. We're the Alliance's only specialist tracking unit—we can't neglect our core duties."
Wang Cheong emphasized the point.
"Inspection work only needs ten men. No issue."
I asked a few more questions, then voiced my deeper concerns.
Possible only because he liked me.
"From the files, the Azure Dragon Sect tip looks like a frame job."
Wang Cheong swallowed hard, sensing the implications.
"Not sure if I should say this, but the Azure Dragon Sect is tied to the Alliance Lord."
"Pardon?"
"Not widely known, even in the Inspection Unit. I escorted the Lord there once. Sect Leader Yi Woong is his half-brother."
"Ah!"
It all clicked into sharper focus.
'On the surface, a turf war between Lake Pavilion and Azure Dragon Sects. But underneath, Alliance Lord vs. Elder faction rivalry.'
Goo Jinha had backed Gal Woohun against me back then too.
'New Inspection leader means they're using Goo Jinha to pressure the Lord. No wonder his rapid promotions.'
Everything about Goo Jinha made sense now.
"You sure it's okay telling me this secret?"
"Leadership knows. One more like you won't cause trouble."
He seemed to expect something, but I had no intention of getting involved.
'Wang's neutral, as far as I know.'
Both factions courted him, but he stayed independent, offering no favors.
Thus, of the Six Great Units, two Elder-aligned, two Lord-aligned, two neutral.
'Still just power games.'
I shook my head at the Alliance's pettiness.
Then—
The safehouse door opened. The Inspection Unit entered, escorting—more like encircling—two men, young and old, to prevent escape.
Wang Cheong murmured from behind.
"That's Azure Dragon Sect Leader Yi Woong and his son Yi Mokseong."
No sign of Goo Jinha.
The inspector with him spotted me and approached with a greeting.
"Here you are, former Inspector Cheon. How have you been?"
Yu Hyeon, scholar dispatched with Goo Jinha this time.
A typical scholar type, not close to Goo Jinha—odd he'd brought him.
"On rotational duty now, so 'inspector' feels off."
Ex-Inspection scholars dropped the title outside Alliance service, going by scholar.
"Where's Deputy Goo?"
"Well, he said he had questions for you and detoured to the Nangong Family, thinking you weren't here."
That rubbed me the wrong way.
'He won't go to my place, right? Just ask around and leave if I'm not there.'
I hoped Goo Jinha wouldn't run into Cheon Yeoseol.
His skills were mediocre, but his instincts unnervingly sharp. Unsettling.