Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Arhats' Interception
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"What is it?"
Jeok Muryong asked, his gaze fixed on Jin Choyoung's hand.
"For now... well, I think I need to take back what I said about going slowly."
"I figured as much."
"Take us straight to Songshan in one go. And if you're okay with it..."
"I'll settle that churning stomach of yours like before."
"Thank you!"
Neung So-hwa beamed brightly and turned to Jin Choyoung.
"You okay with that, Choyoung?"
"Ah, yes..."
"But there's a condition."
"I know, Red Hero. Choyoung, hand over the mountain fruits to the Red Hero."
"Understood."
Jin Choyoung extended the fruits, trying her best not to look too reluctant.
Meanwhile, Jeok Muryong felt a bit awkward at having his intentions seen through, so he smacked his lips.
But he didn't refuse.
Crunch.
Jeok Muryong dumped the fruits into his mouth all at once.
Neung So-hwa watched him chew and swallow without spilling a single drop of juice, then casually asked,
"Were they tasty?"
"No."
They were delicious.
Jeok Muryong scooped up the two women, one under each arm.
-Baek Un! Beom Won! Come to the hermitage at once!
The sudden summons from Hong Gak Seonsa.
The two monks, meditating in the Thirty-Six Chambers—Shaolin Temple's training halls—jumped to their feet in alarm.
Senior Brother! What is this...?
"You heard it too?"
"Yes."
"Then it's not a hallucination. Let's head to the hermitage."
"Yes!"
They rushed to the hermitage, where a grim-faced Hong Gak Seonsa awaited them.
"What is it, Great Monk?"
"Take the Eighteen Arhats and head to the edge of Lesser Room Peak right now."
"All of them?"
"Yes! How many are here? Take everyone except those out on external duties!"
"Understood!"
Without time to ask why, Baek Un and Beom Won launched their forms forward.
Hong Gak Seonsa wasn't entirely inflexible, so he sent a transmission explaining the situation into their ears.
-Moments ago, I sensed a powerful energy flying toward this place.
'Powerful...'
'Energy?'
-I can't say it's outright evil, but it carried no hesitation—purely tyrannical.
'...!'
-This is no martial art of the orthodox path. Depending on the circumstances, you Eighteen Arhats may need to repel it.
It was a true emergency.
Tension etched across Baek Un and Beom Won's faces anew.
-But what I sensed was like a fleeting shadow. I can't judge right or wrong based on that alone. Leave the final decision to you.
Baek Un and Beom Won nodded silently and picked up speed.
At the same time,
Jeok Muryong also picked up on the movements at Shaolin Temple.
"......"
His gaze fixed on Songshan, while his hands roamed over Jin Choyoung and Neung So-hwa's stomachs.
The two women now lay sprawled out completely, accepting his healing palms.
"Ahh, so warm."
"Feels good..."
Jeok Muryong chuckled at their utterly relaxed remarks.
Being betrayed and on the run didn't mean they had to mope all day—this was far better.
Dwelling on grudges and anxiety only gnawed at the mind.
Of course, he couldn't forget the essence of his own position and situation...
'Neung So-hwa should be fine.'
Jeok Muryong thought.
'Whatever Jin Choyoung's scheming doesn't matter.'
Gurgle.
Right on cue, a rumble from Jin Choyoung's stomach.
Hearing it made his own mouth water, so Jeok Muryong pulled a strip of dried meat from his bundle and chewed.
Jin Choyoung stared at it with wide eyes.
"...You're not sharing even a tiny bit?"
"Why?"
"You heard my stomach growling too, Red Hero."
"Skipping one meal won't kill you."
"Wow!"
Jin Choyoung exclaimed in genuine admiration.
"You're too much."
"Be grateful for this seat's healing palms."
"Th-that's one thing, and this is another."
"'This is another' my foot. The world's gotten soft. Back then, if my subordinates pulled that on me, their entire clans would've been wiped out."
"......"
"And you, a mere maid ahead of even an escort guard, should've packed your own rations as a matter of course, no?"
"Th-that's..."
"Don't make excuses about leaving in a hurry. This seat knows you had plenty of time, and heaven knows too."
"...I'm sorry, miss."
Jin Choyoung deflated instantly and apologized.
Neung So-hwa was about to say it was fine when she glanced at Jeok Muryong's face.
Throughout the exchange, his gaze remained locked on Songshan.
Noticing it, Neung So-hwa asked,
"Is something bothering you, Red Hero?"
"Bothering me? Nah, not that serious."
"But there is something?"
"Yeah."
Jeok Muryong said nonchalantly.
"Twelve baldies are sprinting this way like their soles are on fire."
"Shaolin Temple after all."
Jin Choyoung jumped in to change the subject.
"They must've somehow learned we were coming and came out to welcome us."
"Every last one clutching their weapons with faces like their feet are burning?"
"What do we do? They must've figured out who you are, Red Hero!"
"Doubt it. And you—if you babble about 'identities' in front of them, I'll sew your mouth shut."
Gasp.
Jin Choyoung clamped her mouth shut.
Jeok Muryong narrowed his eyes slightly, a sneer curling his lips.
"Some familiar faces too."
"Pardon? Then..."
Whoosh!
Before Neung So-hwa could finish, a dozen forms appeared, surrounding the group.
Exactly twelve, as Jeok Muryong said.
All monks gripping weapons.
Though called weapons, most were just staffs.
Mere staves with a few rings, but in the hands of Shaolin Arhat monks, they could become mightier than a fifty-catty green dragon crescent blade.
Only two were unarmed.
Both familiar faces to the group.
"Monk Baek Un, Monk Beom Won."
Baek Un, who had been pondering, pressed his palms together.
"We meet again, Lady Neung, Lady Jin, and... Benefactor Jeok."
"Coming loaded with your armed grunts means you want a fight, right?"
"Please calm down. That's not why we're here."
Baek Un answered for now, but he couldn't ignore the doubt rising in his mind.
'Is it really? Didn't I come here to fight this man?'
The countless corpses strewn across Heavenly Center Mountain.
Jeok Muryong was the one who produced them.
If that was the case just on Heavenly Center Mountain, how much blood had he spilled elsewhere?
Moreover, Hong Gak Seonsa had ordered them to repel that extraordinary energy.
Though the final judgment was left to Baek Un.
'In the end, it falls to me.'
Baek Un wavered.
On their side: twelve of the Eighteen Arhats.
Six absent, but still two-thirds of the full force.
And each one's prowess? They were the pinnacle among Shaolin's young warrior monks.
Opposing them: three.
Neung So-hwa and Jin Choyoung could be ignored, leaving essentially Jeok Muryong alone.
The victor was obvious to anyone.
'Is it really?'
The nagging thought slithered from his gut.
As Baek Un hesitated, the other Arhats looked puzzled.
Neung So-hwa and Jin Choyoung felt the same.
Only Jeok Muryong crossed his arms indifferently.
"So, what? Gonna charge? Or yielding the first move? We'd rather pass on that."
Baek Un flinched at Jeok Muryong's final words after his deliberation.
"Why pass?"
"I don't have a hobby of bullying the weak."
Neung So-hwa's eyes gleamed as she watched Jeok Muryong.
Not 'this seat', but 'I'.
A subtle difference, but its meaning was clear.
'Red Hero, you're thinking of avoiding a fight if possible.'
He wouldn't back down if attacked, but he wouldn't strike first either.
Otherwise, he would've already proclaimed himself 'this seat' or even Heavenly Demon.
'In that case...'
Neung So-hwa steeled her resolve.
"Please wait a moment."
Neung So-hwa spoke.
A perfectly timed intervention.
Though her voice carried no force or spirit, the Arhats' gazes naturally turned to her.
"Surely the Shaolin monks aren't here to harass innocent travelers like us and the Red Hero?"
"......"
"Monk Baek Un, Monk Beom Won. Didn't you meet us yesterday and share kind words?"
"...Yes."
"You even invited us to Shaolin Temple."
"That's true."
"Yet in just one day, you've flipped like a pancake?"
"There seems to be a misunderstanding, Lady Neung. We simply..."
"If it was just to greet us, you wouldn't need such menacing weapons."
"These? They're merely staffs..."
"Even I, with the eyes of a martial world novice, know they're monk staffs. And what power they wield in Shaolin monks' hands."
"......"
"I'll ask again. Are you here to harass us?"
"...No."
Baek Un answered.
His face, too, resolute.
He signaled the Arhats behind to withdraw first, then let out a long breath.
"Since it's come to this, I'll be frank. One of our temple's great monks sensed Benefactor Jeok's energy approaching."
"The Red Hero's energy?"
"Yes."
The two women's gazes naturally shifted to Jeok Muryong.
He replied indifferently.
"Impressive."
"...Out of caution, he sent us to check this area. Bringing the Arhats was entirely my own decision."
The last part was added with some consideration for Hong Gak Seonsa's dignity.
Pointless consideration, since no one cared either way.
"Hmm, so it's like when you two went to Heavenly Center Mountain?"
"Yes. If anything, that's accurate."
"Understood."
Neung So-hwa nodded.
"In any case, we haven't done anything deserving blame, so we should be received as guests of Shaolin, right?"
"That would depend on consulting the great monks first."
"Because of the Red Hero? As I said yesterday, what happened at Heavenly Center Mountain wasn't unjust."
"I know. However..."
Baek Un sighed softly.
"To be honest, you may have changed your minds and come seeking our temple's aid, but we've already decided not to get involved in True Heaven Palace matters."
"Oh, no need to worry about that."
"Pardon?"
"We're just here wondering if we could have a cup of tea."
"Pardon?"
"Well... you see."
Neung So-hwa turned calmly to Jeok Muryong.
Catching the two monks' stares, Jeok Muryong clicked his tongue lightly.
"Got a craving for whatever tea Shaolin offers. That's it."
"......"
-What do we do, Senior Brother?
Baek Un caught Beom Won's transmission, barely keeping his brow from furrowing.
-What do you mean 'what'? Can't you say anything else?
-S-sorry.