Chapter 160
Chapter 160
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 160
Chapter Title: The Grand Chieftain's Game
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Mak Cheong-ju's martial prowess, now that he had regained his composure, far exceeded Neung Un-bi's expectations.
When enraged, he was like a charging boar, but now, cool and collected, he was like a cunning fox. What seemed like a block was a feint, and a true strike would inevitably carve pain into his body.
His feints and true strikes were a chaotic mix. It was hard to tell which was the real attack, and the moment he made even the slightest mistake, a killing blow would follow.
He didn't hesitate to use dirty tricks. He’d grab a handful of hair, or seize the fluttering hem of his cloak and slam him to the ground.
*Dammit, this is why I said I didn't want to wear it…*
Rrrrip!
Overcome with irritation, Neung Un-bi ripped off the tattered remains of his cloak.
“You whelp, what's wrong?”
“…”
“Were the moves you showed before just a fluke?”
Though the taunting words were infuriating, he couldn't move recklessly. The man was still at ease, while he was growing more and more exhausted.
But something was strange. As the fight dragged on, a question grew larger, complicating his thoughts.
*Why isn't he killing me?*
He’d had countless opportunities to kill him…
It was as if a well-fed cat were toying with a mouse; he attacked only as much as was necessary and no more.
Why?
If this was punishment for catching the fish that was his target, as he claimed, he could have killed or crippled him long ago…
Even as he was beaten and sent tumbling to the ground by Mak Cheong-ju, Neung Un-bi couldn't shake the feeling of unease.
This was a different reason from the King of the Green Forest, who had come because his stronghold was raided…
What could it be?
If he truly intended to kill him, not only he but everyone who came with him would die here.
He had to figure it out. There had to be a purpose behind the actions of a master of this caliber.
The ruler of the Yellow River, near the Three Gates Gorge. The Haeryong Escort Agency, and the Demonic Cult… a branch?
“Ah!”
Neung Un-bi let out a cry as a thought flashed through his mind.
*Right, of course. That can't be it.*
A man who was the Grand Chieftain didn't care what happened to his stronghold?
That was absurd. There was no way he would trade the home his people had protected for generations for a single fish.
“You dare have idle thoughts while fighting me!”
“…?”
Mak Cheong-ju flew at him with a roar.
But Neung Un-bi, wanting to confirm his idea, simply thrust his head forward.
The crown of his head.
With the power behind Mak Cheong-ju's fist, his head would burst, killing him instantly. It was a gamble with his life.
But if the man really intended to kill him, what did it matter if he died this way or that?
This was better than being toyed with like a plaything until death.
If he died…
*The Cult Leader will probably get some revenge.*
But as he suddenly offered his head, a slightly startled Mak Cheong-ju changed the direction of his fist.
Crack!
“Kugh!”
It wasn't that he didn't strike him, but thanks to that, Neung Un-bi was able to confirm his thoughts.
Mak Cheong-ju had no intention of killing him.
Of course, it was only natural. A man of his station couldn't be so reckless.
He had so many people under him…
This meant the fish was just an excuse, and there was another reason.
And Neung Un-bi had a faint idea of what that reason was.
However, he needed time to confirm it.
Neung Un-bi’s movements, which had been solely focused on dodging and retreating, suddenly changed.
Lunar Eclipse, Lunar Halo!
Claaang!
As Mak Cheong-ju flinched at his sudden aggressive turn, an opening appeared. Neung Un-bi retreated, gathering demonic energy into orbs in both hands and scattering them indiscriminately.
The orbs of demonic energy rained down like a meteor shower, but they posed no threat to Mak Cheong-ju.
Boom! Kaboom! Boom!
Even as the ground exploded from the impacts, Mak Cheong-ju calmly dodged and pursued Neung Un-bi.
But it didn't matter to Neung Un-bi whether they hit or not. His goal was to create distance.
Fwoosh!
Having created some space with the Three Nothings Footwork, Neung Un-bi shouted towards Hyang-i.
“Hyang-i!”
“…?”
Hyang-i, who was about to attack Mak Cheon-hyu, paused and looked at Neung Un-bi.
She had beaten Mak Cheong-ju's guard, Cheon-hyu, to a bloody pulp. Fortunately, it seemed she had listened to him and hadn't killed him.
Though he looked like he was on the verge of death.
“Stop!”
“But why?!”
“I'll tell you later! Just stop for now!”
“…”
At his forceful shout, a complex mix of emotions showed on Hyang-i’s face.
But she didn't hesitate for long.
Glaring at Cheon-hyu, she lowered her dagger and stepped back.
Neung Un-bi was the leader of their group. For now, she had to follow his orders.
As Hyang-i stopped, Cheon-hyu also lowered his sword and retreated.
Confirming that their fight had ceased, Neung Un-bi turned his gaze to Mak Cheong-ju.
Now, all that was left was to confirm his theory with him.
Mak Cheong-ju, as if he had been waiting, had also stopped and was watching him.
His gaze was peculiar.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Why did you stop? If it’s that girl Hyang-i's skill, Cheon-hyu would have lost, no?”
“Lost? He would have died.”
“…”
“Hyang-i doesn't leave her opponents alive.”
“Hmm… Still, I don't understand. If you had left her be, that child would have killed Cheon-hyu and come to your aid, wouldn't she? Wouldn't that have given you a better chance against me?”
“…”
Facing Mak Cheong-ju, whose expression was full of questions, Neung Un-bi scowled and spoke.
“Grand Chieftain.”
“…?”
“Stop this game.”
“What? A game? Does this look like a game to you?”
“Is it not?”
“What?”
“You’ve already had several chances to kill me.”
“…”
“The reason you didn't is because you have another motive, isn't it?”
At Neung Un-bi’s words, Mak Cheong-ju stared at him silently before letting out a smirk.
“Fine. I admit it. But how did you come to that conclusion?”
“Getting beaten up made me think. That tormenting me like this couldn't be just because of a fish.”
“Hoh?”
As Neung Un-bi answered with a deep frown, Mak Cheong-ju tilted his head, looking slightly surprised.
“Continue.”
“So… I read you correctly.”
At Neung Un-bi’s words, Mak Cheong-ju’s eyes lit up with curiosity.
“No matter how much it was your target, it makes no sense for someone of your stature, a Grand Chieftain, to get this angry over a single fish.”
“And so?”
“You already know why I came to find you, don't you, Grand Chieftain?”
“Heh heh, you figured that much out? You’re quite something.”
Now, with his arms crossed and ears perked, Mak Cheong-ju looked on as Neung Un-bi spat out the blood pooled in his mouth and took a long breath.
“Ever since the ones operating as the Haeryong Escort Agency revealed themselves as a Demonic Cult branch, all their relationships with the merchant guilds they dealt with have been severed.”
A smile spread across Mak Cheong-ju’s lips at Neung Un-bi's words.
“You must have also heard that the Peng Clan and the Zhuge Clan took advantage of that situation to recruit all the merchant guilds that cut ties with the Haeryong Escort Agency.”
“And so?”
“In such a situation, the infamous Third Young Master of the Demonic Cult comes to visit? You must have thought that while you didn't know my intentions yet, I was clearly here to ask for a favor.”
“…”
“You were probably angry about the fish. As you said, it was like having a prize you'd been eyeing for a long time snatched away. But that was merely a pretext.”
“Hoh?”
“An excuse to break my spirit before we negotiate. Isn't that right?”
“…”
“By making me indebted to you over the Golden Dragon Carp and then sparing my life… you must have thought I'd be intimidated, even with the Demonic Cult backing me.”
The faint smile on Mak Cheong-ju’s face stretched wide from ear to ear.
“Heh, hahahaha!”
“…”
After laughing for a good while, his head thrown back, he finally stopped and looked at Neung Un-bi.
“Quite impressive. No wonder that fellow Jong Ri-gang filled his letter with such praise.”
“…”
“To think you figured all that out while you were busy just trying to block my attacks?”
Neung Un-bi was right.
At first, it was simple curiosity.
Curiosity about the Demonic Cult's Third Young Master, the one his friend, the King of the Green Forest, whose pride was higher than the heavens, had admitted defeat to.
And above all, wasn't he the disciple of that Dam Un-cheon?
Most of the renowned masters in the Central Plains had likely crossed paths with him at some point.
He himself had seen him once.
The man who came alone and defeated his master, not on land, but in the water…
Though they were of the same generation, he was feared and respected.
This was the disciple that such a man, who had hidden himself away like a tortoise in its shell, had finally sent out.
He couldn't be an ordinary fellow.
It was then that he heard Neung Un-bi had come looking for him.
The King of the Green Forest might be an ignorant, unperceptive fool, but could he, the ruler of the Yangtze River, known as the 'River that Connects the World,' possibly be ignorant of the happenings in the martial world?
News that the Demonic Cult had established branches throughout the Central Plains after the Orthodox-Demonic Pact and that friction was arising everywhere reached him without him even trying to listen.
The Three Gates Gorge was no different.
The Haeryong Escort Agency, which had all but monopolized transport on the Yellow River. After they revealed themselves to be part of the Demonic Cult, public opinion turned ice-cold.
The first to move was the Peng Clan of Hebei, which bordered Shanxi. They established a branch in the Three Gates Gorge and swiftly absorbed the merchant guilds that had cut ties with the Demonic Cult.
But that had nothing to do with them. No matter who won the struggles on land, no matter whose boats were on the river, all they had to do was collect their tolls.
In that situation, if the Demonic Cult's Third Young Master came to his stronghold seeking an audience, the intention was obvious.
He must have come to ask for help in fighting the Peng Clan to revive the Demonic Cult's branch in the Three Gates Gorge.
So he came, and he tested him.
In truth, he was more curious about his skills than his intentions.
Just how skilled was Dam Un-cheon's disciple, the one the King of the Green Forest had praised while admitting defeat?
But when he actually arrived, the young whelp was hiding his skills completely, as if he'd been feasting on cunning serpents for breakfast and dinner.
He was so good at buttering him up, calling him ‘elder, elder’…
Just when he was getting antsy that this might end with just words, didn't he see the scale of a Golden Dragon Carp?
So he picked a fight out of the blue.
It would be easier to talk business after breaking his spirit and making him cry anyway.
But he never imagined this whelp would read his mind.
“…Since when?”
“Pardon?”
“Since when did you read my thoughts?”
“Hmm… I was suspicious the whole time, but I was certain when you deliberately avoided the crown of my head.”
“Well, I'll be… I should have just smashed it.”
“If you had, I would be dead without a doubt, and the Demonic Cult wouldn't have stayed quiet, would they?”
“You think so?”
“Pardon?”
“What do you see around you?”
“…Water?”
“Yes, only water. And everyone here is a river bandit.”
“…”
“I could kill you and all your companions, feed you to the fish, and then just say I know nothing. But it seems that's no longer an option. Since you've read my mind…”
Neung Un-bi wore a dumbfounded expression at the cheerful reply.
*Is that… something to say with a smile?*
Still, he didn't seem to have any intention of fighting further.
No, rather, his expression was one of clear disappointment.
*Damn these old men, why are they so obsessed with testing other people's skills…*
Neung Un-bi sighed as if the ground would collapse and said.
“Grand Chieftain.”
“What is it?”
“If it's a spar that doesn't involve risking our lives… I will show you my best.”
That should be enough.
Seeing how much he yearned for it… he would show him a little of his skill.
Isn't this all for the Demonic Cult—no, for revenge against the Peng Clan?
“However!”
“…?”
“Business comes first.”