Colleagues on the Same Boat
The main gate of Yeolhwagak swung wide open as Gong Hwaseon stepped inside with a smile on her face.
Young Master Namgung.
As if he had already known she was coming, Uncheon stood outside waiting for her.
"Sect Leader, welcome."
"So you knew I was coming."
"I heard the sound of your footsteps as you approached."
She had employed the Moonlit Soundless Steps the entire way to the main gate of Hyeolhwagak—the Yaweol Sect’s foremost secret footwork.
I prided myself on my footwork if nothing else…
"I thought I was coming quietly. Your hearing is excellent."
"My ears are sharp, if nothing else. Please, come up."
Once they had entered the tea room prepared in the reception hall, Gong Hwaseon spoke first.
"Have you heard the news from the Central Plains?"
"If you mean the joint statement of the six great families, word has reached me."
"As expected of the renowned great families. They issue a one-sided declaration and the matter simply ends. They never take responsibility for their past wrongs."
"Well… they did say they would not involve themselves in Murim affairs for ten years. Is that not enough?"
"They will simply refrain from concerning themselves with Central Plains Murim matters—yet they will still intervene whenever their own families’ interests are at stake, will they not? The sealing of a gate that I know means refusing to move no matter what profit lies before you. To my eyes this looks like wordplay."
Gong Hwaseon’s expression made plain her displeasure.
"There is reason in what you say, Sect Leader. But I believe you misunderstand. It is not that they will involve themselves according to profit; rather, they intend to avoid causing harm through the sealing itself. Declaring they will not step forward into Central Plains Murim is significant. Our family and the other five are no mere regional houses. Many of our practical interests are bound up with the entire Central Plains. That alone shows the families have made a great resolution."
"Yet the families themselves suffer no direct damage, do they? I am not saying the Namgung Family was at fault… it simply feels unfair. Of course, Central Plains Murim has no choice but to follow the principle that the strong rule."
"This is Murim. From the Baekcheon Sect’s perspective, one can only call it misfortune."
"So even Young Master Namgung dismisses the destruction of the Baekcheon Sect as mere bad luck. As expected, someone born into a great family thinks differently."
"…"
Uncheon knew she was needling him, yet he offered no further reply. It was the truth; there was no need to argue further with her.
A brief silence settled between them.
"Why so quiet?"
"Because I have nothing particular to say."
"It seems my words have soured your mood."
"Not at all. As you said, I am of the Namgung Family, so of course my arm bends inward. I understand why you would think as you do."
As he spoke with her, Uncheon wondered whether he had only been pretending to understand the other person’s position. He also realized how difficult it was to change a fixed idea. Was it even possible to truly think from someone else’s standpoint rather than one’s own?
Gong Hwaseon watched him lost in thought, then spoke again.
"Do you know of Wolyeonggwangheun’s disciple?"
"I do. Wolyeonggwangheun said he does not know whether the boy lives or dies. They were separated while fighting the New Moon Assassin. Was he killed by him?"
"No. He is here, in our sect."
As their eyes met, the whereabouts of Jeong Cheong flowed into Uncheon.
He’s receiving assassin training at the Yaweol Sect?
There were two paths to becoming an assassin of the Yaweol Sect. The first was recruitment and examination; the second was to bring in someone who already possessed the aptitude for killing. Jeong Cheong’s case was ambiguous for the second method, yet he clearly possessed every quality needed to become an assassin.
After being seized by the Yaweol Sect, Jeong Cheong had spent a full half-month locked away, able to do nothing. What he longed to know most was the fate of his master, Wolyeonggwangheun Dokjeonhwa. Not knowing whether the man lived or had died left him frantic.
Then, after fifteen days, a man of the Yaweol Sect finally came down. He held out a box and forced a choice.
"Inside is the Throat-Severing Gu Insect."
"…"
Jeong Cheong understood what it meant. Swallow the Throat-Severing Gu Insect and obey the will of the Yaweol Sect.
"What happens if I refuse?"
"Simple. You die at once."
The man’s voice was calm, yet murderous intent filled his eyes.
Jeong Cheong asked again.
"May I ask one thing?"
"What is it?"
"What became of my master?"
"He is likely alive. We simply do not know where he is."
Jeong Cheong felt relief. Even if he did not know whether his master lived or died, the mere fact that he still breathed was enough.
"Is the New Moon Assassin here?"
"Dead."
"Who…?"
"That we do not know."
So the New Moon Assassin who had tried to capture them was dead. A hollow feeling suddenly washed over him. Watching that man’s martial arts, Jeong Cheong had felt an unclimbable wall—yet even he had lost his life to someone.
Jeong Cheong looked at the box the man held out and asked,
"What happens if I swallow this?"
"You will become an assassin of the Yaweol Sect. If you survive ten years, we will remove the Throat-Severing Gu Insect from your body."
In other words, spend ten years as an assassin for the Yaweol Sect.
"Of course we will teach you the martial arts needed to become an assassin. If your talent is outstanding, you may even rise to become a true assassin of the Yaweol Sect. Is that not a fair offer?"
There was no real choice, yet if he became an assassin of the Yaweol Sect he might be able to find his master.
Jeong Cheong held out his hand and said,
"I accept the will of the Yaweol Sect."
From that day onward, Jeong Cheong began the training required to become an assassin of the Yaweol Sect. The suffering started on the very first day. He had to endure torment that felt like the entire body being tortured without mercy—training to withstand pain in case one was captured by the enemy before taking one’s own life after a failed mission.
Jeong Cheong clenched his teeth and endured every agony through sheer will. He still had a purpose that required him to stay alive.
I must meet Master again.
"Filthy blue sky."
Jeong Cheong lay on the ground and stared upward for half a gak. A brief rest of two gak each day. Training naturally brought pain, yet life in the Yaweol Sect had grown familiar enough that it no longer drained him as much.
Through the training he had realized one truth: until now his own skill had been utterly insignificant. In the Murim his strength ranked far too low. Even though his master had told him to train without rest and give his utmost, he had let those words slip past him—and now he regretted it. If one wished to stand on pride before others, strength had to accompany it.
Just then—
What?
A face suddenly thrust itself into view, blocking the sky.
"I expected you to be suffering, yet looking at your face you seem to be getting by well enough."
"…!"
A strangely familiar voice reached him. Jeong Cheong sprang up from where he lay and stared at the man who had revealed himself.
"You…"
"A pleasure. I never expected to meet you here."
"Cheongryu… Geomhyang…"
"Just call me Uncheon. After all, we are colleagues who have boarded the same boat."
Boarded the same boat?
Jeong Cheong could not understand what the other was saying at all.
"How did you get here?"
"There is much to tell. May I call you Hyung Jeong Cheong? I have ended up calling that man ‘Uncle,’ you see."
"Uncle… you mean Master?"
"That’s right."
Jeong Cheong realized that events he knew nothing about had taken place between his master and Uncheon. Uncheon could tell what the boy was curious about without even reading his thoughts.
"I will start by telling you how I came to be here."
From rescuing Dokjeonhwa to the reason he had remained in the Yaweol Sect—every detail in between was so astonishing that Jeong Cheong repeatedly forgot even to breathe. Uncheon smiled as he watched the other’s face.
It is an incredible story, true. Yet he seems to believe me.
Jeong Cheong sank into thought for a moment, then fixed Uncheon with a piercing stare. Softly, without another word, he dropped to the ground right where he stood and performed a full bow.
"Thank you for saving my master."
"Please rise."
Uncheon read the sincerity in him.
I misjudged him.
He might be full of complaints against the great sects, greedy, and hot-tempered—yet the respect he held for his master Dokjeonhwa was genuine. The tension in Jeong Cheong’s face eased. At last he knew of his master’s safety, the question that had tormented him all this time.
If Master disappeared with that golden-masked man he spoke of, then he must still be alive.
Jeong Cheong had never seen the golden-masked man, yet anyone strong enough to defeat even the black-hatted figure who had killed the New Moon Assassin needed no fretting over his safety.
Jeong Cheong looked at Uncheon once more.
"Young Master Uncheon, will you truly remain in the Yaweol Sect for two years?"
"I made a promise, so of course."
"The Namgung Family will not be pleased if they learn of it…"
"This has nothing to do with the family. It is a decision I made myself."
"And if someone makes an issue of it with the Namgung Family because of this?"
"It will be fine. If trouble arises later, I alone will take responsibility. We need only ensure the family itself is not drawn into any problem. And the family will not find itself in difficulty on my account."
He had already considered the matter. Had it been as Jeong Cheong feared—had it risked harming the Namgung Family—he would never have spoken of remaining in the Yaweol Sect.
Uncheon looked at Jeong Cheong and held out his hand.
"Let us do well together. And speak comfortably."
"…"
Jeong Cheong awkwardly extended his own hand.
Several days had passed since the joint statement of the six great families was issued to the Central Plains Murim. It was not a complete sealing of their gates, but a declaration that they would refrain from activity in the Murim for ten years.
The Central Plains immediately split into two broad opinions: that the families had shown courage by admitting their wrongdoing, and that because it was not a full sealing they had failed to properly acknowledge their guilt. Yet those voices remained only words. No power openly declared that the six families must be made to bear severe consequences for their sins. They merely grumbled and muttered in places where they could not be seen.
After issuing the joint statement, the five families that had gathered for the talks began departing the Zhuge Family the very next day. The Sichuan Tang Clan left first, followed by the Shandong Ak Family and the Moyong Family. The Hebei Peng Family and the Namgung Family did not depart at once and still remained.
The two family heads known as the strongest among the houses north and south of the Yangtze faced each other.
"Family Head Namgung, did you not find him strange?"
Namgung Cheonwu knew at once of whom the other spoke.
"Uncle Peng, do you mean the Family Head of the Moyong?"
"Hahaha. So you noticed as well."
Peng Ga-u smiled as though it were only natural.
"The Moyong Family Head is a crafty old fox. He will never reveal his true thoughts of his own will. His words and actions are always just a little out of alignment."
"True enough. If there is one man in the Central Plains whose inner mind is hard to grasp, it is he."
"Exactly. And his greed is enormous. His competitive spirit as well."
"Is greed not the same for every family?"
"Of course no man is free of greed. The problem is that the Moyong Family Head’s greed cannot fit inside the vessel he possesses. Unlike you."
Namgung Cheonwu smiled and asked in return,
"Uncle Peng, do you believe the Hebei Peng Family can contain the Cheonhwangdo Map?"
"Hahahaha!"
Peng Ga-u burst into booming laughter. The words might have sounded offensive, yet he took no offense at all.
"Shall I say I stepped back because I lack the ability? As far as I know, among the many powers of the Central Plains only a handful possess the capacity to hold the Cheonhwangdo Map. Among the martial families, only the Namgung Family could bear that object, would you not say?"
"I think so as well."
"Haha, you have far too much confidence."
"It is not confidence. I merely spoke as things are."
Peng Ga-u turned his gaze to Namgung Hyeonwu, who still stood nearby with an impassive face.
"What of you? Do you think the same?"
"I believe Elder Brother the Family Head is correct. Our family seems to possess nothing that the world cannot hold."
"They say the arm bends inward… I asked for nothing."
Peng Ga-u snorted as he looked at the two men of the Namgung Family. Then he tilted his head back and welcomed the wind that touched his face.
"Sword Emperor, do you feel it?"
"…"
"Chaos, confusion, death, destruction. Ill-omened energies seem to be rushing fiercely toward the Central Plains."
Namgung Cheonwu’s expression hardened. He too felt the approach of an unknown dread—the sensation that they might sink into a hopeless situation and finally vanish. His heavy voice seemed to sink beneath the surface of water.
"I fear hard times are approaching."
"Perhaps this is the hour of reverse heaven. It will become one of two things: the extinction of houses, or the advent of a new hero."
"Uncle Peng, I suspect the being who will stand at the center of the coming chaos is the one who caused the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident."
"I think so as well. Sword Emperor, I wonder if you have heard. My late father sometimes said he felt there were unknown powers within the Murim."
"He said such things?"
"He did. At the time I was far too young and could not even verify whether it was true, so I paid it no mind and let it pass. Looking back now, it would not be strange if beings we know nothing of are hidden within the Central Plains Murim."
Peng Ga-u looked at Namgung Cheonwu again and asked,
"What will you do? If they reveal themselves and we must fight, we will have to move in person. Will that be possible?"
"Uncle Peng, did we not issue a statement to the Murim? We cannot move outwardly."
"Of course we must not break the promise we made. Yet did we not also state that if we find the being who caused the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident, we may resume activity in the Central Plains Murim?"
"That was a clause inserted only for unforeseen contingencies."
"If hidden powers begin to move, then we too must move for the sake of the Central Plains Murim."
"Understood. When that time comes, our family will also step forward."
Namgung Cheonwu clasped his fist in salute as he answered. He felt no fear no matter whom he might face. Truly worthy of being called the Family Head of the great Namgung Family.
Peng Ga-u felt the energy flowing through the other’s entire body and smiled as he spoke.
"Ah, by the way—something will soon happen to the Moyong Family. Are you not curious?"
"Is it something ill?"
"It is hard to say. Difficult to distinguish whether it will be bad or good."
"…"
"Hahaha. You wish to know now, but rumor will spread through the Central Plains soon enough. Wait for it."
Peng Ga-u’s face looked genuinely intrigued; Namgung Cheonwu gave a slight shake of his head.
"Uncle Peng, if it is a dangerous matter, be careful."
"Thank you for the concern. It is not particularly dangerous, so look forward to it."
The smile never left Peng Ga-u’s lips.