Chapter 70
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: Young Assassin (1)
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"I had high hopes since you're called the Blade Lord, but you're just a loudmouth with an empty reputation."
The Great Heavenly Demon's face was full of disappointment.
Right now, Blade Lord Peng Cheon-ho was passed out drunk in an empty room.
"Where in the world is there an expert worthy of your eyes?"
Heh heh heh...
"Does that mean you're acknowledging me as the world's greatest?"
"Acknowledge? You firmly believe it yourself anyway."
A quiet killing intent began to creep out from the Great Heavenly Demon's entire body.
"Then are you saying I'm not the world's greatest?"
Ugh...
If he gave that answer here, there'd be another round of swordplay tonight.
But right now, Blade Lord Peng Cheon-ho was staying at my house.
Even though he was dead to the world from drink, the Blade Lord was an absolute master of the martial world.
An absolute master wouldn't miss the qi waves ripping through space.
"You... are the world's greatest."
Heh heh heh...
"Do you truly believe that?"
They say even the Five Kings can't surpass the Divine Monk, who's the top among the Five Kings.
But I hadn't met the Divine Monk, nor any of the Five Kings.
"Let's talk after you've met all the Five Kings."
The smile faded from the Great Heavenly Demon's face, hardening bit by bit.
"As expected, you've got backbone. Even facing death, you won't speak falsely."
The Great Heavenly Demon slowly drew his sword.
"Let's just talk today."
"I'm not in the mood to chat with you."
"Have you... ever liked someone? Or admired a woman? You're a man too, aren't you?"
The situation was urgent, so I blurted it out, but even I thought it was a pathetic question.
'No matter how desperate, for me to ask something this ridiculous. There's no way that demon ever liked anyone.'
But his wavering eyes made his hand pause on the way to his sword.
"Did you really have a woman you admired?"
The Great Heavenly Demon's wavering gaze quickly returned to its original sharpness.
"What use is it now?"
"Care to share a drink with me? We've never had one together."
Myeong-gak, Cheongpung, Zhuge Ji, and Namgung Hye quietly watched Un-san's movements.
Incredibly, Un-san was now drinking alone in the kitchen.
The strange part was that no one sat across from him, yet the cup filled itself and emptied on its own.
"Cheongpung. Do you see a ghost sitting across from him?"
Myeong-gak asked just in case.
"A ghost? He's just toasting with his master in his dreams."
Cheongpung brushed it off, but suspicion arose, so he burned a talisman.
It was the strongest talisman for repelling stray spirits.
Sizzle...
But the cup still filled and emptied.
Haa...
Then a long sigh escaped Un-san's lips as he drained his cup.
That sigh carried all sorts of sorrow and regret.
Watching Un-san, Zhuge Ji felt a strange emotion.
She had once spied on her father drinking alone.
He had the exact same look and sigh back then.
She later learned he had once loved another woman.
But she died of illness, and unable to defy the family's wishes, he married her mother.
Her father probably drowned his sorrows in drink now and then, remembering that woman.
'Did that man have someone he loved too?'
Un-san's drinking session lasted until dawn.
Only then did he rise and step outside.
A nameless martial clan had birthed a once-in-a-century—no, once-in-a-millennium prodigy.
At age ten, he had already pierced the essence of his clan's handed-down martial arts.
By twenty, he roamed the martial world, befriending many.
Surprisingly, one was a woman from the Emei Sect.
The young prodigy of the nameless clan and the Emei woman clicked well, cherishing and admiring each other.
But Emei wouldn't accept the young prodigy from a nameless clan.
He pressed on with their love despite Emei's opposition.
In the end, it provoked the giant sect, and the nameless clan met a tragic end.
No one survived.
Emei ruthlessly slaughtered the entire clan except the young prodigy—even the elderly and children.
"No righteous sect or clan pursued the matter. The woman I loved heard the news and took her own life. All I had left was a parchment pointing to where the world's greatest martial art lay dormant. I planned to destroy Emei in my final moments. What would you have done in my place?"
Those were the words the drunken Great Heavenly Demon left me with.
Peng Cheon-ho's face twisted oddly at my demand for payment for food, drinks, and lodging.
"Go Gong. You think I'd stiff you for silver? I'll stay a few more days and settle up all at once, so don't worry."
But I didn't want Peng Cheon-ho staying here any longer.
His boisterous nature was fine, but he was a headache in every way.
Especially how he kept bringing up Peng Ok, trying to pair me with his daughter.
"Just so you know, my place charges a lot for drinks, food, and lodging."
"How expensive could it be?"
Peng Cheon-ho scoffed, then gaped at my follow-up.
"Including breakfast, it's thirty taels of silver."
"What...? Did you sprinkle gold dust in the food and drinks?"
"If Great Hero Peng cooked for the guests himself, how much would you charge?"
"Well..."
Peng Cheon-ho hesitated, unable to answer quickly.
A man with countless retainers and servants wouldn't cook himself.
But if the Blade Lord of the world did, taste aside, the price would skyrocket.
"Now that I think about it... thirty taels doesn't seem excessive."
Peng Cheon-ho's hand trembled slightly as he pulled the silver from his pouch.
He clearly hadn't brought much when leaving his clan.
After receiving thirty taels from Peng Cheon-ho, I bowed at the waist.
"Thank you again today."
Ahem... hem...
"I came here not just to meet you, but also the Seok Family head. So I'm visiting the Seok Family today."
I chuckled inwardly.
"Understood. Have a safe trip."
"I'll visit again soon, Go Gong."
Peng Cheon-ho left after a polite bow.
Watching his back as he passed through the gate felt refreshing.
'Martial world folk are all headaches, every one of them.'
To reject me, who will command the martial world as one of the Five Kings.
If the martial world knew a young dragon coiled in Huanin County, beauties would flock here.
I'd tried taking one as a concubine first, but the arrogant wench flatly refused.
Heh heh heh heh...
'Still, it was pretty fun.'
Recalling Feng Ja-young's alluring struggles, Seok Ja-kyeong smirked lewdly as he walked the street.
"Ja-kyeong. Something fun happen?"
A retainer patrolling with him asked, seeing his grin.
"Something fun? Yeah. But it's a secret."
"You've gotten boring lately."
Hahaha.
Seok Ja-kyeong laughed brightly, then spotted a young woman coming from ahead and curled his lip.
'Not bad. Skin's dark, but dolled up, she'd pass for a beauty.'
He passed her indifferently.
After twenty more steps, he casually said,
"Think I'll end patrol here. Got business, so head back to the clan first."
"Hey, Ja-kyeong. Blade Lord Peng Cheon-ho's at the clan now. Impress him, and you might learn a technique. Shouldn't we hurry back?"
"Not interested. You go ahead."
Seok Ja-kyeong inwardly mocked his fellow retainer.
With such poor judgment, what use was he?
They had a successor surpassing the Blade Lord and arts rivaling Peng Family techniques, yet drooling over nonsense.
He'd live like that and die nameless in the martial world.
"Fine then. See you, Ja-kyeong."
After sending the retainer off, Seok Ja-kyeong turned toward where the woman had gone.
Hurrying after her, he spotted her figure in the distance.
She left the street, walked a field path, and entered a small hamlet.
A village of a dozen households, a bit away from the main slums.
The woman entered a shabby house at the village's end.
'Too bad, but I'll head back for today.'
He wanted to follow inside, but villagers were about.
Slipping out unseen, Seok Ja-kyeong calmed his pounding heart.
'No one suspected me when that merchant wench died. No one will care about some worthless slut.'
Heh heh heh.
Myeong-gak, preparing dinner, scratched his bald head, then suddenly left the kitchen and scanned around.
Cheongpung, Zhuge Ji, and Namgung Hye outside stared at him oddly.
"Myeong-gak. Something wrong?"
"Nah. Just feel uneasy for some reason."
Back in the kitchen, Myeong-gak puzzled over it while cooking.
After hearing Go Gong's words not long ago, his inner power had surged dramatically.
His senses for surroundings sharpened too.
He'd casually breached the wall he'd desperately tried to pass.
'That's why I can't leave this place.'
Not even possible at Shaolin.
Grinding spices in the mortar, Myeong-gak scanned the kitchen for the iron sphere.
"Oh right. Where's that iron ball?"
Covered in indecipherable script, staring at it somehow imprinted the characters in his mind.
Searching around, he resumed grinding.
'I'll ask Go Gong when he returns.'
Grind... grind...
Grinding away, he scratched his head again and stepped out.
"Weird. Something's off. Feels like someone's watching us."
Cheongpung and Namgung Hye paled, sensing it too.
Only Zhuge Ji, the weakest, looked puzzled.
Then the gate opened, and Un-san entered shouldering a booze barrel.
Someone was hiding in my house.
Setting down the barrel, I looked up at the roof.
"Why don't you come down?"
No sooner had I spoken than a young man in night clothes dropped before me.
"This lowly one greets the Silver Duke."
Gwi Jong was Yi Sa-gwon's son.
I calmly accepted his bow.
"How is the sect leader?"
"Well, thanks to Silver Duke."
"What thanks? Anyway, take care."