Traces of Heavenly Thunder
Namgung Hyeonwu watched Uncheon walking beside him.
At some point, the boy had grown taller than he was.
If only this child’s qi circulation had gone as it should…
Swallowing the regret that rose in him, he asked Uncheon,
“How is the flow of your inner energy? Does it still feel blocked?”
“Yes. It does.”
Namgung Hyeonwu found himself thinking of the past.
Of the reason Uncheon’s inner power had gone wrong.
I should never have listened to that quack of an old man…
After his wife had given birth, he had taken her out for a short journey to get some air. On the way back to Mt. Hwangshan, they had saved an old man who had nearly been killed by bandits.
The old man was a physician who also gathered medicinal herbs in the mountains. From his robes he drew out a herb wrapped in cloth.
“Great hero, thank you for saving this old life. Not long ago I had a dream, and when I went to the place it showed me, I dug up this herb. By the look of it, it seems a Hasuo of more than fifty years. With a Hasuo of this age, a child will grow up healthy and free of illness.”
The root the old man offered was not thin and fibrous, but thick and blunt, faintly steeped in a deep herbal fragrance.
Namgung Hyeonwu took the herb to Noryun, the Master of the Hall of Medicine. No matter how fine it looked, one could not simply feed something like that to a newborn.
“Hmm… From the shape, it does appear to be Hasuo. And judging by how far the root has grown, it must be about fifty years old. Even a fifty-year Hasuo is hard enough to come by.”
“Is that so? I received it from an acquaintance.”
“I’m not saying it’s bad, of course. It will do the health some good. But to be classed as a true spiritual medicine, it would need to be at least two hundred years old.”
“Ah… So those would be quite expensive.”
“Naturally. A purple Hasuo of more than five hundred years is a treasure among treasures. And that isn’t even the end of it. Legend has it there is such a thing as a ten-thousand-year Hasuo.”
“What happens if a person takes a ten-thousand-year Hasuo?”
“How would I know? I’ve never so much as touched a thousand-year Hasuo, let alone seen one with my own eyes. How am I supposed to know about a ten-thousand-year one?”
As Noryun stroked the Hasuo with a look of wistful regret, Namgung Hyeonwu quickly left the Hall of Medicine. Believing the herb in his hand was truly Hasuo, he had his son take it.
After that, the family was thrown into chaos.
Once the boy ingested the herb, his face flushed red and his entire body filled with a searing heat. They tried every method they knew to bring the fever down, but it would not break. The physicians went so far as to say the child might not live—yet Namgung Hyeonwu could not give up. Every hour, every minute, he wiped the baby’s whole body with cold cloths.
Then, on the evening of the third day, he jolted awake from a doze—and found his son returned to normal, as if the whole ordeal had been a lie.
He could not begin to count how many scoldings he received that day, from his wife and from the family elders alike.
It was my greed that did it. I nearly killed my own son. If I had simply not fed him that rotten herb, he would be better off than he is now…
To this day Namgung Hyeonwu still regarded the herb he had given Uncheon as something strange and wrong—yet he never fully grasped that from that day on, Uncheon had never once fallen ill.
Dokjeonhwa and Jeong Cheong frowned as they watched Namgung Hyeonwu and Uncheon step inside.
“I am Namgung Hyeonwu, Master of the Law Enforcement Hall.”
“…So you are Hanpungnaengsim—Cold Wind, Cold Heart?”
“I am. This is my son. I am told the two of you already made each other’s acquaintance on the road up to our estate.”
“That is so.”
Dokjeonhwa looked at Uncheon. Beside him, Jeong Cheong casually addressed the young man.
“Had a good time out?”
“It wasn’t exactly a pleasure trip—but after finishing our business in the village, we did pick up a few good things to eat.”
Jeong Cheong let out a short, mocking snort of laughter. He still carried himself as if Uncheon were someone he could dismiss.
In that instant, Namgung Hyeonwu’s brow twitched.
“How rude. From the looks on your faces, you seem disappointed that the Family Head did not come in person. You would do well to remember exactly where you are.”
Anger smoldered in his eyes.
Startled, Jeong Cheong cast a desperate glance at Dokjeonhwa, who hurriedly clasped his fists in formal salute.
This man is a master a full step above me.
Urgency edged his voice.
“Hanpungnaengsim—forgive my disciple’s discourtesy. He is still young.”
True to the alias Cold Wind, Cold Heart, the very air around them seemed to plunge in temperature. An awkward tension settled over the room.
Uncheon steered the conversation to break the mood.
“Father. It would be better if we sat and spoke properly.”
Namgung Hyeonwu drew back the chill and gestured the two men toward seats.
“You may sit as well.”
“Thank you.”
The four of them sat facing one another. Namgung Hyeonwu was the first to speak.
“I will be direct. You claim to be a man of the Baekcheon Sect?”
“I do. But… Hanpungnaengsim, I mean you no disrespect. Still—the fact that the Family Head himself did not come. Is it because the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident is a trivial matter to the Namgung Family?”
“Wolyeonggwangheun—I would say the reverse is true. Are you not the one treating the Namgung Family lightly? This is the Namgung Family—lord of Anhui Province, one of the Ten Great Houses of the Central Plains, one of the Ten Lords of the Murim.”
An undeniable pride ran through Namgung Hyeonwu’s voice.
“I am well aware that the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident is no trivial affair. But do you truly believe that, on your word alone and without verification, you can simply meet the Family Head of the great Namgung House? If that is what you thought when you came, then you have already slighted this family.”
“…”
“This family has received you with as much respect as possible. If, in my judgment, there is sufficient reason for you to meet the Family Head, then you will meet him.”
“…I understand.”
Sensing that Dokjeonhwa had been cowed by his presence, Namgung Hyeonwu decided to ask the question that interested him most.
This matter clearly touched on a shame the Namgung Family preferred to keep buried—something they had no wish to bring into the light. Wolyeonggwangheun could not possibly be unaware that dragging such a thing into the open might provoke not only resistance but outright hostility from the Namgung House. Should anything go wrong, he might not even leave the estate alive.
And yet only two men had come up here to press the matter of the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident. Knowing full well they could not defeat the Namgung Family in a fight, they had still come. There had to be a reason—backing of some kind, orders from someone, or coercion. Nothing else would have brought them.
Namgung Hyeonwu looked him straight in the eyes.
“Was it your own will that brought you to this family?”
Dokjeonhwa’s pupils trembled, ever so slightly. Namgung Hyeonwu’s gaze caught that flicker with merciless clarity.
If he cannot defeat the Namgung Family alone, only a madman would climb up here to demand answers without a second thought. He is no fool—he cannot believe we would fail to see that.
In those wavering eyes, Namgung Hyeonwu found his certainty. This was not the look of a man who wanted the truth. It was the look of a man with a purpose.
He had not been made Master of the Law Enforcement Hall merely because he was of the direct line.
Looking at Dokjeonhwa, he spoke again.
“This family, too, regards the destruction of the Baekcheon Sect with sorrow. But we do not believe the responsibility for it rests with us. Are you certain that our house was involved in that blood massacre?”
“The six great families that stormed the Baekcheon Sect killed every last person—adult and child alike—and burned the buildings to the ground.”
Dokjeonhwa tried to keep his tone even, but his voice rose.
“That is not the truth.”
“Is the Namgung Family making excuses now?”
“So you have already decided that this family committed such an act and speak from that conviction. Can you take responsibility for what you have said?”
“…”
“Of course, it is true that this family went to the Baekcheon Sect—so I can understand why you might suspect us.”
Namgung Hyeonwu’s manner softened as he asked again,
“You say you alone survived that blood massacre. How did that come about?”
“…I suppose one could call it a blessing in misfortune. At the hour the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident took place, I was drunk in an inn.”
“You were not at the Baekcheon Sect?”
“I was not. Had I been there that day, I would have died as well.”
“A martial artist does not become so drunk that he cannot rise, does he? With your inner power, it should not have been a problem at all.”
“At the time my inner power was still weak. And… I was the sort who drank in order to get drunk. Are you by any chance suspecting me?”
“I asked only to establish the precise circumstances. Would you not be curious, if you stood in my place?”
“…”
Dokjeonhwa was left without a reply. It was, without question, a situation that invited suspicion.
“In any case, if you failed to rise early enough, then you never saw the destruction of the Baekcheon Sect with your own eyes.”
In that moment—whether from tension or something else—the sound of Dokjeonhwa swallowing hard at the base of his throat was clearly audible.
“I see. So you did not see it. Then can you tell me how you are so certain that six sects destroyed the Baekcheon Sect—and why you suspect this family in particular?”
“…The claim of six sects comes from the fact that six distinct killing marks were found on the corpses of our brothers and comrades. One of those was the trace of Heavenly Thunder Qi.”
“Heavenly Thunder Qi? You found traces of Heavenly Thunder Qi within the bodies of the Baekcheon disciples?”
“I did. In the martial world of the Central Plains, Heavenly Thunder Qi exists only within the heart techniques of the Namgung Family, does it not?”
“The heart technique of Heavenly Thunder Qi is indeed the Namgung Family’s inner cultivation method. And you confirmed this yourself?”
At Namgung Hyeonwu’s question, Dokjeonhwa hesitated, unable to answer at once. A subtle smile touched the corners of Namgung Hyeonwu’s eyes.
He was the Master of the Law Enforcement Hall of the Namgung Family—the sharpest mind in the house, a man who judged and resolved every situation according to principle and rule.
Dokjeonhwa swallowed once more and answered.
“I did. I confirmed it myself.”
“Hmm…”
Namgung Hyeonwu wrinkled his nose and gave a soft snort of laughter.
“You know very little of this family’s martial arts. The only ones who can recognize the residual traces of Heavenly Thunder Qi’s inner power are those who have themselves cultivated the Heavenly Thunder Qi of this house. Failing that, your own inner power would need to have reached at least the realm of Sun and Moon Fusion—and you do not appear to be at that level.”
From the light of qi faintly visible between Dokjeonhwa’s brows, at the center of his brow, Namgung Hyeonwu inferred that the man’s cultivation was at the realm of Two Manifestations of Yang Light.
Dokjeonhwa went rigid. It was the first he had heard of such a thing. He had believed that even without practicing the heart method of Heavenly Thunder Qi, one could still detect its traces. His lie exposed, his face flushed red.
Sitting quietly at his father’s side, Uncheon read the thoughts in the flustered Dokjeonhwa’s gaze.
This man does not want the truth of the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident. What he wants is something else entirely.
In that same moment, Dokjeonhwa felt something strange and turned his eyes back to Uncheon. The young man was watching him with a calm, unreadable gaze—one that gave no hint of what he might be thinking. An unnameable, prickling unease crawled up Dokjeonhwa’s spine.
Namgung Hyeonwu rose from his seat and looked at Uncheon beside him.
“We will step outside for a while.”
“Yes, Father.”
Uncheon rose, understanding his father’s intent. Namgung Hyeonwu looked down at Dokjeonhwa, who still wore an expression of dismay.
“I will give you time to think. We will return in half a shichen. At that time, either tell me the truth—or, if you cannot answer, it would be best if you withdrew, for we will not press this matter any further. We, too, have no desire to dig up a sorrowful affair of the martial world after all these years and make an issue of it.”
“…”
Dokjeonhwa and Jeong Cheong watched the two men’s backs as they left.
He had never personally confirmed that traces of Heavenly Thunder Qi remained. That, too, had been information given to him. He had just let slip that someone stood behind him.
The plan had been to appeal to the Wulin Alliance only after visiting all six great sects—and only if every one of them denied involvement.
Jeong Cheong’s voice was still thick with distrust.
“Master, the Namgung Family is wriggling out of this. We can’t just sit here.”
“No matter how much the two of us insist otherwise, if the Namgung Family says it isn’t so, what can we do?”
“If we back down just because we lack strength, we won’t be able to do anything. We have to take a hard line.”
“And if the Namgung Family answers with force—can you stop them? Can you even get out of this place alive?”
“Even if I die, I can’t stand what those six sects did!”
“Haa… Can’t stand it, you say…”
Dokjeonhwa let out a helpless sigh as he looked at his disciple, who spoke without thinking. Jeong Cheong was a martial talent of the highest order. His only regrettable trait was a nature that was too fierce, too impatient.
Dokjeonhwa had taken him in after the Baekcheon Sect’s destruction. If vengeance were to be taken, it was his own task—not something for his disciple to shoulder. In truth, Dokjeonhwa had never intended to hunt down those who destroyed the Baekcheon Sect and take revenge. He was simply grateful that he had not died that day.
Yet Jeong Cheong had become far too absorbed in the tale.
I shouldn’t have brought this boy who knows nothing.
Coming to the Namgung Family alone had felt too burdensome, so he had brought Jeong Cheong with him. Now he was beginning to think that decision might disrupt the plan.
“That is my burden, not yours. I am grateful that you understand how I feel—but fighting them will solve nothing. I will say it again: with our strength, we cannot defeat the Namgung Family. Do you understand?”
At Dokjeonhwa’s firm tone, Jeong Cheong lowered his head as if deflated. If they had no intention of fighting, then what, exactly, was the point of coming all the way to the Namgung Family?
The old man entering the Pavilion of Clear Waters kept his lips pressed shut, yet he looked as though he had a great deal to say. Thick wrinkles covered his face, but his eyes were still as clear and sharp as those of a young man in his twenties. His white outer robe billowed behind him as if impatient with the pace of his steps.
Honestly… I have no idea what he’s doing with all this leisure.
Thud.
The old man deliberately made his footsteps loud as he strode into the study of the inner court. The closed door rattled open, and the old man in yellow robes slowly turned his gaze. Beneath hair that flowed with a silvery light, his face itself seemed to shine. The thick lips curved in a smile still carried the presence of a man who, in his youth, must have been a formidable martial artist.
Namgung Hu, the previous Family Head of the Namgung Family, sat bolt upright in his chair, reading a book.
“Ahem…”
The old man in the white robe widened his eyes and, stepping inside, called out in a booming voice,
“Younger brother—what do you think you’re doing right now?”
“Elder brother. You’ve come.”
Namgung Hu welcomed the white-robed elder warmly. Namgung Su, Namgung Hu’s older brother by blood, was the Azure Sun Sword Sovereign—a martial artist who had once dominated an entire era. By temperament he had found it stifling to remain in one place, and so he had handed the seat of Family Head of the great Namgung House straight down to his younger brother. Even now, he spent more time abroad in the Central Plains than he did at the estate.
“Aren’t you taking things a little too easy? You can’t possibly not know who has come to the family.”
“I know.”
“A man who knows sits here this leisurely?”
“You and I stepped back from the family’s affairs long ago, did we not? Between the current Family Head and all the sharp young ones, there are more than enough capable people.”
“I know that perfectly well, of course.”
“Elder brother—haven’t we already fought hard enough in the martial world? There is nothing wrong with living a little more freely now, enjoying ourselves. If the family truly needs our help, that is when we step forward.”
“Ha… The Fire Heaven Sword King, who used to charge at the world like a wild bull—how did he become as mild and detached as some benevolent scholar…”
“Hahaha. As long as one lives, who can truly overcome the years? They say no flower lasts ten days, that when a thing reaches its extreme it must reverse; that glory and decline, rise and fall, are but a spring dream.”
“I never knew when you became so learned.”
“I surprise myself these days as well.”
“Aigoo… I don’t know anymore. I was going to step in so those children wouldn’t be worn down because of us—but it seems that isn’t what you have in mind.”
“As you well know, elder brother, our family was deceived into going to the Baekcheon Sect—but in the end we withdrew quietly. The trouble is that we spent long years without ever uncovering the secret force that orchestrated the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident.”
Twenty-five years ago, the six greatest powers of the Central Plains had moved on the Baekcheon Sect: the Namgung Family; the Shandong Yue Family, overlords of Shandong; the Hebei Peng Family, masters of Hebei; the Zhuge Family of Hubei, said to be the finest minds of the Central Plains; the Sichuan Tang Sect, the sky of Sichuan’s martial world; and last, the Moyong Family, supreme in the north. Any one of those houses alone would have been more than enough to deal with the Baekcheon Sect.
At the time, the Namgung Family had moved in secret with a small, elite force, and had kept the matter so thoroughly concealed that even most of the other families who went to the Baekcheon Sect never knew of them. The two brothers had wanted the affair to end with their generation. They ought to have left only good things for the generation below—yet if this incident became known throughout the Central Plains, it could harm the Namgung Family’s renown as a house that upheld chivalry and justice. And because the object involved was something that could throw both the family and the Central Plains into turmoil, they alone had known of it, and had never revealed its existence.
They had only learned of the Baekcheon Sect’s destruction after returning home with their people. And now, twenty-five years later, that old affair had thrust itself up like a spike.
I told myself we moved for the sake of the martial world… but deep down, there may have been greed—a desire to possess that object…
Which was why the other five great families had gone to the Baekcheon Sect as well.
“Elder brother—let us simply watch and see how this unfolds.”
Namgung Hu began to fill his brother’s cup.
Leaving the Guest Pavilion’s Quiet Hall, Namgung Hyeonwu entered the Heaven Hall with Uncheon.
“We will wait here for half a shichen.”
“Yes, Father.”
Uncheon sat beside him and watched his father lost in thought. So deep was his concentration that his pupils stayed fixed on a single point without moving. Sensing the stare boring into him, Namgung Hyeonwu looked at Uncheon.
“Do you have something to say?”
“No.”
When Uncheon started to speak and then stopped, Namgung Hyeonwu gave a light snort and said,
“Do you think I don’t know your nature? If you have something to say, say it quickly.”
The people of the family feared Namgung Hyeonwu. Yet at some point his son had stopped being afraid of him. Far from tense, Uncheon always seemed as at ease as if he were dealing with a friend.
“From what I sense, he isn’t curious about the truth of the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident.”
“…You’ve judged correctly. I think the same.”
“If he were truly certain our family had done such a thing, he would never come here and tell us so. He would simply spread the rumor through the rivers and lakes. I suspect he came to demand something of the family in exchange for burying that day’s events.”
“…”
“Do you know why they went to the Baekcheon Sect back then?”
“I don’t know the reason either. Judging by the fact that all six great families moved, I can only guess it was something that threatened the martial world—or some great affair.”
“The Family Head would know, wouldn’t he?”
“It was a matter the previous Family Head handled in absolute secrecy. I cannot be sure.”
Namgung Hyeonwu was quietly surprised by this new side of Uncheon.
His inner power may be lacking—but it seems he has a rather sharp head on his shoulders.
Half a shichen passed.
Namgung Hyeonwu rose.
“Time is up. We should go and hear what decision they have made.”
“Yes.”
Uncheon stood as well. Then Namgung Hyeonwu casually sounded out his son’s intentions.
“Do you still wish to leave the family and stand on your own? With your abilities, even without martial force, you could be of help to the house. Will you come to the Law Enforcement Hall?”
“What?”
“You little brat. Who do you think you’re playing coy with?”
“What do you mean, playing coy?”
Namgung Hyeonwu fixed his son with a hard stare.
“You know as well as I do that you are not the sort for strong martial force, so entering the Martial Force Hall would be difficult. Take this chance and come into the Law Enforcement Hall. Help me.”
“Isn’t the Law Enforcement Hall the place family members most want to enter after the Martial Force Hall? If I go in there, people will talk.”
“What kind of excuses are those? Do you think I don’t know what you’re thinking?”
“I will give it deeper thought. I’m not yet ready in my heart…”
Thump!
“You unfilial little—”
Namgung Hyeonwu lightly kicked the backside of Uncheon, who had begun walking ahead. Uncheon let himself be shoved forward and laughed. There was no real need to make excuses. Blunt and rough as he was, his father’s regard for him was genuine.
Namgung Hyeonwu and Uncheon went straight into the Quiet Hall. Once more they sat facing each other across the table. Uncheon looked into Dokjeonhwa’s eyes and read the thoughts that rose there now.
He’s anxious. He has no idea what to do if things don’t go the way he wants. He’s more slipshod than I expected…
Dokjeonhwa had thought that bringing up the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident would make meeting the Family Head no great difficulty—yet he still had not met him.
“Master Dok—have you thought it over carefully?”
Namgung Hyeonwu addressed him by name rather than by his martial alias, Wolyeonggwangheun. The way one called another person could change the entire atmosphere of a room.
“Is there any chance I might be permitted to meet him?”
“Waiting is tiresome, yes. There are many procedures, and it can feel like an interrogation. For an ordinary matter it would have been different. Precisely because this is important, this family is exercising caution.”
After a moment’s thought at Namgung Hyeonwu’s words, Dokjeonhwa seemed to reach a decision and continued.
“…The reason I came to the Namgung Family is to ask about a certain object.”
“Was it not the Baekcheon Blood Sect Incident that you were curious about?”
Namgung Hyeonwu’s expression remained calm, but inwardly it was another matter.
At last—he is speaking of the real reason.