Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Piercing Question
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A question that hit the nail on the head.
Jeok Muryong flinched faintly.
“Ah, no. This seat...”
“Then, shall we first look for a nearby village? We can fill our stomachs there and rest... Ah!”
Neung So-hwa's robes fluttered violently.
Jeok Muryong had suddenly hoisted her onto his right shoulder.
“W-what is this?!”
The startled Jin Choyoung cried out, but in the next moment, she too was slung over his left shoulder.
“...!”
“Huh?”
The two women stared at each other in stunned silence for a moment.
Jeok Muryong spoke calmly.
“From now on, focus on your breathing.”
“Pardon? What do you...”
“We're off.”
Bam!
Jeok Muryong kicked off the ground and dashed forward.
As the surrounding scenery sped away in an instant, the two women felt as if a boulder had been dropped on their solar plexuses.
“Hup!”
“Ugh!”
It was the moment when his advice to focus on breathing truly sank in.
Among the lightness skills derived from the Divine Art of the Heavenly Demon, the pinnacle of instantaneous speed—Demon Shadow Instant God Step—unfolded.
Whoosh!
Jeok Muryong ran in any direction for now.
At the same time, he scanned for human presences using his vast qi sense spread out widely.
The same method he had used to shatter the Heaven's Net earlier.
He had traversed Heavenly Center Mountain, locating and annihilating every group of ten or more, the only difference this time being an expanded search radius.
The search didn't take long.
Before much time had passed, Jeok Muryong and the two women arrived at a nameless small village.
Thud!
The inn door at the village entrance nearly flew off its hinges.
The waiter inside scowled at first but quickly cowered under the chilling aura emanating from the visitor.
The visitor was, of course, Jeok Muryong.
From his perspective, not smashing the door was already a tremendous show of restraint.
‘B-boiled pork or something?’
The waiter gulped dryly at the sight of the two women draped over his shoulders.
Jeok Muryong set them down and plopped into an empty seat.
As the pale-faced Neung So-hwa and Jin Choyoung dry-heaved, he growled at the waiter with murderous intent.
“The most delicious thing here.”
“...Pardon?”
“Bring everything you've got.”
It was an order that implied, ‘or die.’
His lifelong dream was to live long enough to paint the walls with shit, so the waiter bolted to the kitchen without a word.
Soon, savory aromas wafted from the kitchen.
Scent of various spices impossible to get from mere roasted meat chunks—Jeok Muryong's eyes welled up inexplicably.
‘This is gonna be good.’
Could a single thought in his mind feel so poignant?
Not openly sobbing was the last shred of pride as the Heavenly Demon.
Still, he couldn't stop a single tear from rolling down.
Neung So-hwa and Jin Choyoung, finally stopping their retching, exchanged whispers at the sight.
“He's at it again.”
“Yeah.”
Munch munch.
Slurp.
Gulp gulp gulp.
Sluuuurp!
A whole suckling pig vanished before the two women's eyes in the blink of an eye.
Several bottles of liquor emptied in a flash, followed by a washbasin-sized bowl of beef noodle soup slurped down.
In between, the dumplings and pancakes he popped into his mouth were countless.
One thing was clear: altogether, it had to be dozens of servings.
Yet Jeok Muryong's stomach hadn't burst—it was nothing short of miraculous to the two women.
“Um...”
The waiter sidled up hesitantly.
It was obvious what he wanted.
At Neung So-hwa's glance, Jin Choyoung pulled out a gold ingot from her bosom.
“This should be enough, right?”
“O-of course!”
The waiter's eyes sparkled as he reached for the gold.
Then an unexpected voice cut in.
“Hold on.”
It was Jeok Muryong.
His face was buried in yet another bowl of noodles, but his voice was serene, a far cry from his earlier munching.
“Is there a problem, Jeok Hero?”
“Has the price of gold dropped that much?”
“Pardon?”
“I'm talking about the value of a gold ingot. Has it plummeted over the years?”
The two women exchanged looks.
Jin Choyoung finally replied.
“Ah, no. Not particularly.”
“Then it's too much.”
“Pardon?”
“We ate a fair bit, but at most thirty servings. A full gold ingot is overkill for that.”
“Ah.”
Realizing Jeok Muryong's intent belatedly, Jin Choyoung and Neung So-hwa looked at each other again.
“Hey, waiter.”
“Y-yes?”
“Am I wrong?”
“N-no, sir.”
“A single silver ingot would more than cover it. Right?”
“Really?”
Neung So-hwa asked the waiter.
He nodded reluctantly, unable to hide his disappointment.
“See, Choyoung?”
“Understood.”
Jin Choyoung pocketed the gold and handed over a silver ingot.
As the waiter slunk away swallowing his regret, Neung So-hwa smiled awkwardly.
“A bit unexpected, Jeok Hero.”
“What? Haggled like a cheapskate?”
“Ah, no. That's not what I meant.”
“Unexpected is what I should be saying. True Heaven Palace acts like some grand merchant conglomerate, yet its Young Palace Lord has no sense of money?”
“S-sorry.”
“No need to apologize. Just be more careful.”
“Pardon? Why?”
“I plan to eat like this every meal.”
“...”
“Well, freeloading and then beating down anyone who complains is fine by me.”
“That would be a problem for us.”
“Exactly.”
“I understand perfectly. Thank you for the advice in so many ways, Jeok Hero.”
“Good.”
Even after centuries, gold's value likely hadn't changed.
So Jeok Muryong assumed, and he was right.
‘Hmm. Just from this, it doesn't feel like that much time has passed.’
Jeok Muryong's gaze swept the table.
The variety of dishes seemed to have increased greatly during the centuries he was trapped in the Bottomless Abyss.
But fundamentally, it was still boiling, grilling, frying, or deep-frying.
People's perspectives and values were probably the same.
‘Then what of the Heavenly Demon?’
Jeok Muryong's expression grew serious again.
He could tell from the women's reactions when he asked before.
The Heavenly Demon was little more than a ghost of the past.
It wasn't particularly bitter.
If anything, it felt like a good thing.
Perhaps this was a chance to completely sever ties with the Heavenly Demon and live freely.
‘As Jeok Muryong the martial artist, not the Heavenly Demon Jeok Muryong... you know?’
Doing what he wanted, eating what he craved, beating those who deserved it.
To live like that, the Heavenly Demon title was unnecessary.
If anything, it was a shackle—that was his honest feeling.
‘A full belly brings strange thoughts.’
Jeok Muryong muttered inwardly, rubbing his bloated stomach.
He had no lingering attachment to the name Heavenly Demon, but discarding it like old rags still felt off.
“I've got a rough idea of our location, miss.”
After the meal.
Jin Choyoung, who had stepped out briefly after securing rooms, returned and spoke.
“This is Little Neung Village. Yeonan to the south, and a bit north leads to Heochang.”
“Heochang?”
“Yes.”
“We're farther from Heavenly Center Mountain than I thought.”
“Indeed. Given Jeok Hero's speed, it's only natural.”
“Yeah, it was hard to even stay conscious.”
Recalling being clutched and hurtled at breakneck speed by Jeok Muryong, the two women's faces paled anew.
“Anyway, let's talk about what comes next.”
“Yes. First, past Heochang to Zhengzhou.”
“From Zhengzhou, veer west and the main road leads straight to Luoyang, right?”
“Yes. Or head east the opposite way to Kaifeng.”
“If we go to Kaifeng...”
“We could seek aid from the Great Seal Sect.”
“...”
Neung So-hwa clamped her mouth shut.
True Heaven Palace was Hubei Province's largest merchant alliance and one of the Central Plains' three great trading houses.
As such, it had invested or stored enormous funds across the region.
A key part of those investments was support for martial sects.
The Great Seal Sect was one that had benefited—nay, the foremost among them.
Excluding Shaolin Temple, the North Star of the orthodox sects, it was the top sect in Henan Province's martial world.
Owing, of course, to Sect Leader Gye Won-jong, the Kaifeng's Sword.
But a sect was ultimately a collection of people.
It couldn't grow just because one leader was strong.
True Heaven Palace had backed the Great Seal Sect lavishly since its minor faction days, maintaining close ties up to recently.
Precisely until the Previous Palace Lord Nam Juwon passed.
“We can't trust the Great Seal Sect.”
Neung So-hwa said.
“You know Grandfather sent a letter to Sect Leader Gye before he died, Choyoung.”
“Yes, miss.”
“He told me the contents too.”
“He asked Sect Leader Gye to come to True Heaven Palace and prevent chaos after his death.”
“Yes. And Sect Leader Gye did nothing.”
“...”
“Even if he had come in time, it might not have changed things. It could have even worsened. But even then, responding to Grandfather's letter was the right thing.”
“Miss, perhaps the letter never reached the Great Seal Sect.”
Messenger pigeons or falcons often met mishaps en route.
Hunted by other birds or sniped by skilled archers.
So Neung So-hwa couldn't dismiss Jin Choyoung's possibility outright.
“But there was no reaction even after Grandfather's death?”
“That might be natural too. They're third parties, after all—not in a position to meddle in True Heaven Palace affairs.”
“...”
“Of course, if you asked for help, it would be different.”
“What if the Sect Leader shows ambitions like the others?”
Jin Choyoung faltered.
“Then...”
“No recourse.”
Neung So-hwa said.
Even though she knew it wasn't entirely true.