Chapter 94
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: The Reason for Sadness
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Pang Soun approached Cheon Taesan.
Even though he was covered in wounds here and there, bleeding profusely, the Pang Family's signature roguish charm hadn't faded a bit.
"You're freaking awesome! When did you get this cool, big bro?!"
Pang Soun gaped at him, mouth hanging wide open.
The arena reeked of blood and was filled with groans, but the survivors couldn't tear their eyes away from Cheon Taesan.
He had single-handedly taken on dozens of Demonic Cult warriors and driven them off—it was downright shocking.
They had struggled against even one Demonic Cult fighter, and all their escort warriors had been slaughtered.
These first-rate experts among the escorts had been cut down in just ten exchanges, yet Cheon Taesan had swept them away. Everyone was dumbfounded by his prowess.
Dang Jinok bit his lip.
Dang Garyeong sighed as she watched him.
They hadn't even been able to kill the Ten Directions Flower Scatterer with their hidden weapons, and he'd lost an arm to it. Meanwhile, the scholar she'd quietly looked down on had turned that same foe into a bloody pulp. The sense of self-loathing was beyond words.
"As expected of the Scholar Sword! Big bro! Why have you been hiding this from your little brother all this time? Every time I stopped by an inn after arriving in Honam and heard tales of the Scholar Sword's exploits, my heart raced like crazy."
Pang Soun spat as he spoke, excited.
"At first, I didn't even think of you when I heard 'Scholar Sword Cheon Taesan.' I figured it was just someone with the same name. But the more I listened, the more it sounded like you—stories from the Murim Alliance, fighting the Demonic Cult in Hefei, repelling them at Hopyeon Field, even reforming the spoiled son of a Sa faction overlord."
Gazing at Cheon Taesan—who stood proudly in the middle of the battlefield, staring at the retreating Demonic Cultists—with eyes full of admiration, Pang Soun kept chattering on.
"Young Master Pang, show some restraint. There are far from just one or two dead here. This is a time for mourning, not blabbering."
Cheon Taesan fixed him with a stern glare, and Pang Soun snapped to attention, bowing his head.
"Ah! Sorry... I got carried away. My apologies."
Wudang Sect disciple Un-sang was startled by Pang Soun's attitude.
Even if his scoundrel ways had toned down a lot, that hyperactive nature hadn't died out.
From what he'd seen so far, Pang Soun was not the type to bow to anyone or say sorry.
How many times had he regretted traveling with him?
The guy just didn't get it—no matter what you said.
He always planned everything on his own whim. That was par for the course.
And he had such drive that Un-sang had ended up following along.
This trip around Lake Dongting had been the same. Un-sang had insisted they hurry to Sichuan to aid Kunlun Sect.
But Pang Soun had rented a boat, whining that he'd regret it forever if they skipped Lake Dongting, practically dragging him here.
'In the end, following his lead worked out. If we'd set off alone and gotten ambushed, we'd have been wiped out.'
On that point, he felt grateful to Pang Soun.
Cheon Taesan approached Black Wolf Dog.
"I know the Beggars' Sect is busy with your own casualties, but we desperately need your help right now. The Beggars' Sect should collect the bodies of the Demonic Cult warriors here and the fallen Murim Alliance experts."
Though it sounded like a request, Black Wolf Dog felt it as an order from a high-ranking Murim Alliance official.
"Y-Yes, of course. I'm sorry."
"Sorry? For what?"
Cheon Taesan asked as Black Wolf Dog suddenly apologized.
"I should have taken Scholar Cheon's words seriously... Then we wouldn't have suffered such heavy losses."
"That's in the past. Don't dwell on it. Just sorting this place out will be more than enough on your mind."
Black Wolf Dog hung his head.
He'd brought over fifty elites, and only about a dozen had survived.
The Demonic Cult warriors had been too strong.
And Scholar Cheon had swept them away with flying leaves and beads.
Black Wolf Dog muttered to himself.
'They say something too big can't be seen up close... Now I get it. You have to view him from afar to grasp his true scale.'
In that moment, the scholar felt like a towering mountain to him.
I hadn't noticed, but when I came to, a huge crowd had gathered around the boat to watch the fight.
With it being a clash between the Demonic Cult and the Murim Alliance, the dock was packed with spectators.
We'd been too caught up to even realize.
Black Wolf Dog, as the eldest, spoke first.
"First, let's leave this place, get treated, and head to the Cheonhyang Inn where Young Master Dang is staying. We need to discuss this incident."
Everyone nodded, knowing how crucial this battle had been.
Zhuge Dowon, who'd lost an arm, and Dang Jinok looked lost to the world, their pupils dilated.
"Understood. See you in two shichen then."
"Big bro, we'll treat the escort warriors first, collect the bodies, and then come see you."
Pang Soun kept calling me big bro, and it was getting burdensome.
I returned to the inn with Yeoseol.
"Oppa, are you okay?"
"What do you mean?"
"Your eyes look sad."
It wasn't entirely pleasant that Yeoseol had matured enough to read my gaze like that.
"A lot of people died."
"But the ones you killed were all bad guys, right? You always say non-human scum can be killed without mercy, and that removing evil is how you protect good."
Yeoseol gave me a look that said she couldn't understand why I, with my usual philosophy, was sad after fighting the Demonic Cult.
"Even if they're evil now, they were once cute sons born to some mother. No one starts out evil. It's the world that turns them that way—sadness for that, I guess."
"I kinda get it, but not really."
"It's still too hard for you to understand, Yeoseol."
"That reminds me... Oppa, what if I turn evil someday, living like this?"
"Do you really understand what you just said?"
"Yeah."
"Foolish girl. There's a saying: don't travel with fools. I see evil the same way. Hang with evil, and you'll either become like them or get killed by them. No room for second thoughts with evil."
"So if I stay away from evil people, I won't turn evil?"
"Exactly."
I ruffled her hair, and she giggled.
"I'm learning from you, oppa, so no chance of me turning evil."
"Yeoseol's too smart since she takes after me."
"Hee hee hee."
It was a relief to see her brighten up after looking so gloomy lately.
'If I hadn't noticed, Yeoseol would've been consumed by Mae Yu-yeon's soul, and this innocent girl would've vanished.'
That would've been horrific in its own way.
"You'll meet a lot of people soon, so act like you don't know any martial arts. Don't draw attention."
Yeoseol nodded, picking up on my concern.
"Got it. It'd be dangerous if my identity got out."
Yeoseol knew she wasn't just some amnesiac girl.
Still, she didn't pry for details.
She seemed to instinctively know some things were better left unsaid.
Two shichen later, everyone gathered at the inn where Dang Jinok and I were staying.
Our inn was right in the commercial heart, so it was easy for the others to arrive quickly.
Pang Soun showed up even earlier than planned and came looking for me.
"Big bro!"
I shot back as he blurted it out the moment he saw me.
"Young Master Pang, since when have we been on brotherly terms that you're calling me big bro?"
"Huh? Have you been keeping me at arm's length this whole time? That's hurtful. I heard even that scoundrel Nangong Mubaek calls you big bro. Hell, you even blood-brothered with some Sa faction brat. Is our history worth less than theirs?"
"I have fond memories with them."
"Huh? If that's the case, don't I top the list? My memories are full of you."
"All I remember is you harassing me, Young Master Pang."
"That's so unfair. Wasn't that just my clumsy way of trying to get close to you?"
Born under the Green Venerable Star among the Seven Stars Seven Origins energies, Pang Soun was like a rabid wild dog.
With his naturally shameless personality and headstrong ways amplified by the star's madness, what else could he be?
"What the hell are you, always fawning over my oppa like that?"
Yeoseol, who'd been watching from the side, finally snapped in annoyance.
Even a dog would've gotten the hint after that, but he kept pestering, so she stepped in.
"Huh? Who's this ugly little squirt glaring at big bro like that?"
The old Pang Soun would've cursed her out, but now, with his madness gone, he tried normal conversation.
"Me? I'm the Scholar Sword's little sister."
"Little sister? Like, a brother?"
Yeoseol's eyes widened cutely at the obvious tease.
"Eyes like dead fish, mouth like a mud turtle's ass—people around you must suffer. Tsk tsk tsk."
Pang Soun burst out laughing at Yeoseol, who even clicked her tongue.
"Kuhahaha! This kid's hilarious. I've been hanging with stuffy Wudang Taoists and Zhuge Family scholars lately—where'd this fun little rascal come from?"
Yeoseol crossed her arms, clearly not liking the sly Pang Soun.
"Oppa, can't you get rid of this guy? I can't stand looking at him."
"The more you hate someone, the more you'll end up loving them—that's how relationships work. Look at me and big bro. I hated him so much at first, but now I love him. So the more you hate me, the more you'll love me."
"Sigh, I should've kept my mouth shut."
It was the first time I'd seen Yeoseol tire out in a verbal spar.
"Oppa, how did you even reform a guy like that? If he's this bad now, what was he like before?"
Yeoseol covered her mouth with her hand but spoke loud enough for Pang Soun to hear.
I chimed in to back her up.
"Out of all the scoundrels you've seen, Yeoseol, who sticks out the most?"
"Nangong Mubaek, obviously."
"Think of him as one of five Nangong Mubaeks."
"Ugh! I'd die. Oppa, that's not human—that's practically a mad dog!"
Pang Soun didn't seem offended at all by the words.
Soon, even Zhuge Dowon arrived at the inn, and Black Wolf Dog spoke up.
"This way, everyone."
They rented a large room and went inside.
"Scholar Cheon, if you would."
At those words, I immediately deployed a barrier to keep our voices from leaking out.
"How's the treatment going?"
Zhuge Dowon and Dang Jinok had bandages wrapped around their severed arms.
"Fine."
Un-sang had bandages on his arm, leg, and chest too, but they were hidden under his Daoist robes.
"Scholar Cheon, first time meeting you. I'm Wudang Sect's second-generation disciple Un-sang."
We were meeting for the first time, but I already knew all about Un-sang's background.
Still, I played along and greeted him.
"Master Un-sang."
"If not for you, Scholar Cheon, even our ship's safety would've been forfeit. Thank you."
Un-sang bowed deeply to me with utmost respect.
Zhuge Dowon, on the other hand, still shot me cold looks—probably because of what happened back at the Nangong Family.