Chapter 68
Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 68
Chapter Title: That's My True Feelings (3)
“Urk...”
With intense pain shooting through his waist, Whirlwind Divine Sword Feng Hyun opened his eyes.
The moment he did, he saw crowds of people passing by on the street before him.
He was sitting with his back against a wall, his once-neat daoist robes reduced to rags from who knew how many collisions and flights through the air.
His face was caked in dirt, his topknot half-undone, and his hairpin crooked.
How long was I out?
Feng Hyun had blacked out from Kang Moo-jin's monstrous repulsive force and gone flying.
He had no idea how much time had passed or how far he'd been sent.
“Whew, old timer. It's cold out—don't freeze to death. Here's some money for a bowl of noodles.”
At that moment, a plump middle-aged woman tossed a single copper coin between Feng Hyun's feet and left.
“...?”
Not yet aware of his wretched state, Feng Hyun blinked in confusion.
“...”
Watching from the side, the beggar Cho-sam grew irritated.
He glared at Feng Hyun with bulging eyes.
This guy had suddenly appeared in his begging territory and succeeded where he hadn't, which infuriated him.
“Never seen such a shameless bastard without any code of honor.”
“...?”
Hearing such vulgar abuse for the first time in his life, Feng Hyun couldn't hide his bewilderment.
“Are you talking to me?”
“Who else, you bastard? You think beggars don't have territory? What gives you the right to barge into mine and beg?!”
Cho-sam had failed at begging all day today. He hadn't gotten a single coin or even leftover food, leaving him on edge.
Then this daoist-robed beggar snags a copper coin? Of course he was pissed.
“...Hah!”
Amazed, Feng Hyun picked up the coin in front of him and dropped it into Cho-sam's basket.
“Here, take it.”
“Gasp! I-I'll serve you as my big brother!”
“...No need. Don't bother.”
Shaking his head in disbelief at the absurdity, Feng Hyun ignored Cho-sam—who was bowing at a perfect right angle—and headed toward the Mi Hyun Inn.
He'd flown so far that he couldn't even see the inn anymore.
At this rate, I have no face left to show the sect leader.
Feng Hyun and his disciples' goal had been to inflict a minor injury on Kang Moo-jin, who was heading to Mount Tai Bai, and delay him.
The reason was information that Kang Moo-jin had accepted a request from Mount Hua Sect to exterminate a Kui beast.
“We must prevent Mount Hua's name from rising.”
Mount Zhongnan Sect knew the rumors of Kang Moo-jin's talent for slaying bizarre spirit creatures.
If he succeeded on Mount Hua's request, wouldn't Mount Hua's reputation grow in Shaanxi Province?
From Mount Zhongnan's perspective, they had to stop that.
At least until the elders they'd sent to deal with the Kui beast succeeded.
“Far from injuring him, I got injured instead.”
Feng Hyun wiped the red blood trickling from his mouth with his sleeve.
Kang Moo-jin's freakish repulsive force had caused his qi to backflow, inflicting serious internal injuries.
“No choice now... I'll have to persuade him.”
Fighting Kang Moo-jin again in his current wounded state was practically suicide.
Even uninjured, Feng Hyun wasn't confident, honestly.
That mid-air clash had let him gauge the opponent's overwhelming power.
A young man my junior in age, yet above me in skill.
Feng Hyun was a seasoned supreme master in the Flower Realm at over seventy, with no equals outside the Ten Martial Venerables.
Yet this youth had brought even him to his knees in one blow. What was he?
He's no mere monster—he's a freak of nature.
Before he knew it, Feng Hyun had arrived at the Mi Hyun Inn. He let out a deep sigh.
“All I can do is hope he listens to reason.”
Hard tactics had failed; now it was time for soft persuasion.
* * *
Meanwhile, inside the Mi Hyun Inn—excluding Jin Gyeol, who was unconscious, embedded in the wall—the Mount Zhongnan daoists knelt with hands raised to the ceiling.
“...Th-that's the reason, Hero Kang.”
“So your goal was to trip us up.”
“Y-yes! We hold no grudge against you, Hero. Absolutely none!”
“Figured as much. I knew that already.”
There was no real bad blood between Mount Zhongnan Sect and Kang Moo-jin.
But he'd once helped them via secret escort, recovering a lost sword for their daoist, fostering some positive ties.
“I did think it was odd.”
Moo-jin had sensed something off from the start.
Mount Zhongnan owed him for that escort—why pick a fight now?
“Tch. If there's beef, talk it out. Talk! Who swings swords out of nowhere, you idiots?!”
Washed clean of seasoning, Un-cheon clicked his tongue with a sour look.
“And if you're gonna talk, spit it out quick. Why drag it out and annoy people?!”
“W-well... This is Mount Zhongnan's internal secret, so...”
“Shut it, punk!”
Crack!
Un-cheon smacked the Mount Zhongnan warrior's head with his chopsticks.
“Thanks. You really loosened their tongues.”
“Hmph. Not because of you—I was just curious.”
When Kang Moo-jin questioned them, the Mount Zhongnan daoists clamped shut. Even intimidation didn't faze them.
But the moment Un-cheon from next-door Mount Hua chimed in on his visit(?), they spilled everything effortlessly.
The infamy built by the Mount Hua Sword Demon proved useful here.
“So what now? It'll be too late even if we chase.”
“Hm. No need to rush, I think.”
“You saying those Mount Zhongnan fools will fail? Music to my ears, but after this interference, they seem dead set.”
No city holds two overlords.
Mount Zhongnan and Mount Hua clashed daily in big and small ways to outdo each other in achievements and fame.
To them, the other's rise was something to stake their lives blocking.
“Fighting spirit beasts is worlds apart from fighting humans. They'll fail for sure. If I'm right, those elders won't even land a single sword strike on that Kui.”
“Hm. Still, they're Mount Zhongnan elders. No way they can't swing once?”
“They won't.”
Moo-jin nodded firmly.
Humans created martial arts to wield qi, transcending human limits.
The weakest of natural creatures became the strongest through it.
If frail humans grew this mighty, how much stronger were spirit beasts brimming with qi?
“Only a Ten Martial Venerable could handle it.”
“But you can?”
“I'm a specialist in this.”
Moo-jin had slain enough spirit beasts to line the training grounds four times over if seated.
“Anyway, we'll talk details with the man himself.”
Kang Moo-jin's gaze turned to the beggar—no, Whirlwind Divine Sword Feng Hyun—standing at the inn's wide-open door.
* * *
“...What did you just say?”
With the Mount Hua Sword Demon, Yu-hwa, and the Mount Zhongnan daoists all dismissed, Feng Hyun's eyes widened as he faced Moo-jin alone.
“Wh-what will you do?!”
“I'll accept Mount Zhongnan's request.”
“...?”
Moo-jin brushed the dirt from Feng Hyun's sleeve with a friendly smile.
“Think about it. What your client wants is for Mount Zhongnan's name to spread far and wide, right?”
“We want to stop Mount Hua's name from rising...”
“Same difference. Mount Zhongnan's fame outshining Mount Hua's means Mount Hua doesn't rise, doesn't it?!”
The oddly persuasive words had Feng Hyun nodding unconsciously.
“R-right.”
“Exactly! I'll take your client's request. Meaning, not Kang Moo-jin of Mount Hua slaying the Kui!”
Moo-jin spread his palm wide, as if unveiling a signboard in the sky.
“Kang Moo-jin, who accepted requests from both Mount Hua and Mount Zhongnan Sects, slays the Kui! That's how it goes.”
“Ooh...!”
“Frankly, I get nothing out of this. Might even get flak for double-dipping requests. So why do you think I'm offering?”
“Wh-why?!”
“Mount Zhongnan and Diamond Escort Agency aren't strangers! We've built some brotherly bonds through past escorts, haven't we?!”
Feng Hyun's eyes sparkled at the words.
“R-right!”
“So! I'll help my brothers in Mount Zhongnan.”
Moo-jin brushed dirt from Feng Hyun's other arm, grinning.
“Your client... no, Mount Zhongnan Sect is the epitome of righteous sects, revering alliances. That's why I want to help.”
“Ooooh...! You're giving us a chance too.”
Tears welled in Feng Hyun's eyes from the overwhelming emotion.
“Haha! We're not outsiders. Of course I'd offer such a chance.”
“Thank you, Golden Ghost Indestructible. Truly! It's a joy knowing chivalrous souls like you still walk the Central Plains.”
“But... there's one issue.”
Moo-jin sighed with a troubled face.
“What is it? Tell me. I'll help however I can.”
“It's the money.”
“Money?”
“Mount Hua promised me a hefty sum.”
“And?”
“Think: Mount Hua pays big for my services, but Mount Zhongnan does it for free? What will people say?”
Feng Hyun's eyes bulged in shock.
“Th-they'll call Mount Zhongnan stingy!”
“Exactly. I don't want your brothers' money... but people's eyes...”
Moo-jin sighed with a pained expression.
The acting was so flawless that even Feng Hyun, over seventy, fell for it hook, line, and sinker.
“Don't worry! We'll match whatever Mount Hua pays!”
“Really? It'll be a lot...”
“You don't know Shaanxi geography well, but Mount Zhongnan's richer than Mount Hua! Whatever they pay, we can too!”
“Heh... Huh!”
Moo-jin hastily schooled his features as his mouth unwittingly split into a grin.
No matter how thrilled, he couldn't let his guard down now.
Not when the plan was this close to fruition—ruining it would be a disaster.
“Well, since it's come up, shall we sign the contract now!?”
Thud!
Moo-jin placed a document on the table.
“What's this?”
“Mount Hua commissioned the regular escort of Plum Cloud Merchant Group's tea leaves. This is a request contract converted to equivalent gold value.”
“Th-they commissioned the Plum Cloud Merchant Group's tea escort?!”
Feng Hyun's pupils trembled in panic.
Plum Cloud Merchant Group's tea business was Mount Hua Sect's lifeline.
“S-so how much do we...?”
“No more, no less—exactly ten thousand silver taels.”
“...T-ten thousand?!”
Feng Hyun's eyes nearly popped out.
Ten thousand silver taels?!
An ordinary peasant family barely spent one silver tael a month!
In gold, that was a staggering four hundred gold taels.
Half of Mount Zhongnan Sect's annual operating budget—an insane sum.
“Th-that needs sect leader approval...”
“Sigh. I'd love to wait, but time's short. You know—one day late, and the commoners...”
Moo-jin sighed regretfully.
“No helping it. Guess I'll just take Mount Hua's request and...”
“I'll do it! We'll pay! Right now—my seal!”
In a fluster, Feng Hyun pressed his spice-stained thumb on the table, then stamped the document.
Watching, Moo-jin beamed.
“Welcome, client!”