An Unwanted Favor
"What in the world do you think you are doing?!"
A middle-aged man dressed in official robes bellowed.
He had never trained in martial arts, so he possessed not a shred of internal energy.
Yet, no one dared to call him insolent, let alone cut off his head.
And for good reason.
The middle-aged man was none other than the magistrate of Tongseong County.
Daoist Hyeon-un of the Murim Alliance was the first to speak up.
"Ahem. While it is true there was a minor disturbance, for the authorities to interfere in the affairs of the Jianghu like this..."
He was about to ask if this did not violate the long-standing convention of non-interference between the government and the martial world.
"Interfere? Did you just say interfere?!"
The magistrate slammed his hand on the table, his anger flaring even brighter.
"Do you have any idea how terrified the people of Tongseong County are right now?!"
"Ahem..."
With hundreds of armed martial artists gathered, there was no way the common folk could remain ignorant.
Moreover, the mountain of corpses piled up on Mount Bang was staggering.
Terrified of being caught in the crossfire of a senseless bloodbath, the townspeople were trembling behind locked doors, refusing to step outside.
"Furthermore, did Black Hegemony Castle not break its promise to never leave Geukrak Island?!" the magistrate raged.
Just like that, the three-way meeting had naturally devolved into a four-way summit.
The magistrate, representing the imperial government, had forced his way into a gathering of the three major factions ruling the Jianghu.
"I tolerated your presence because I trusted your vow never to set foot on the mainland, yet you dare to cause such havoc!"
"We were not the ones who caused this havoc, it was—"
"I do not want to hear it!"
"Ahem."
Daoist Hyeon-un and Dan Gyo-ik could only swallow their groans, unable to push back any harder.
Under normal circumstances, this would be utterly absurd.
It was unthinkable for a mere local magistrate to raise his voice at an elder of the Murim Alliance and the First Apostle of the Blood Moon Cult.
If the two of them wished it, snapping the neck of a magistrate who knew no martial arts would be as easy as snapping a reed by the roadside.
However...
"I say this again: the Prefectural Governor is aware of this situation! He was absolutely furious, demanding to know how such lawlessness could occur under the bright light of day!"
The incident in Tongseong County had not remained confined to the area.
News of the clash had spread far and wide, to the point where even the noble scholars vacationing at Poyang Lake in Jiangxi Province were gossiping about it.
Naturally, the Prefectural Governor, who governed the entirety of Hubei Province rather than just a single county, could not remain in the dark.
And it went without saying that he had flown into a towering rage upon hearing the news.
Public order was directly tied to the people's livelihood, meaning any civil unrest beyond a certain threshold would be chalked up as a failure of the Prefectural Governor's administration.
If that happened, the Imperial Inspectors or the Provincial Governor-General would submit a formal report to the throne, which could lead to severe disciplinary action.
Thus, even though the magistrate was merely acting as the Prefectural Governor's mouthpiece, the martial artists had no choice but to sit quietly and take his wrath.
If they pushed back now, it would be tantamount to defying the Prefectural Governor, and by extension, the Imperial Court itself.
"Cease this disturbance immediately! Otherwise, I shall personally report this entire matter to the Prefectural Governor without delay!"
"..."
The principle of non-interference between the government and the martial world meant that both sides agreed not to encroach upon each other's domains.
However, this was not because the martial world was so powerful that the Imperial Court could not touch it.
Rather, it was a boundary drawn out of mutual recognition that a clash would lead to mutual destruction.
Therefore, Daoist Hyeon-un and Dan Gyo-ik suppressed their irritation and watched the situation unfold.
If they pushed any further, they would truly rupture their relationship with the government.
But then, the situation took an even more unexpected turn.
"From what I can see, Lord Jeok and Sadocheon have managed to resolve the chaos in Tongseong County quite well. As for the other two factions, you may return to where you came from."
"...!"
"?!"
The magistrate was openly taking Jeok-un's side.
Lord? Did he just call him 'Lord'?
A local magistrate is calling that brat 'Lord'?
The official title of a county magistrate was Zhixian—literally, the one who knows the county.
For a high-ranking official who held judicial, administrative, and military authority over an entire region to address a wet-behind-the-ears youth as 'Lord'?
The two elders found it so absurd they began to wonder if they were witnessing some bizarre theatrical farce.
Naturally, their confusion quickly turned toward the motive.
Why would the magistrate openly side with Sadocheon? What reason could he possibly have?
That magistrate is a greedy dog who has swallowed every bribe we've thrown at him. For a man like that to betray us in an instant... what on earth did they do to him?
The crisis in Tongseong County had only begun a few days ago.
The brat named Jeok-un must have arrived around that time as well.
What kind of trick had he pulled to completely win over the magistrate they had spent so much effort cultivating?
Faced with this inexplicable situation, Daoist Hyeon-un and Dan Gyo-ik scowled, but Jeok-un's expression was actually one of deep dissatisfaction.
Contrary to their assumptions, Jeok-un had done absolutely nothing.
Jeok-un, making no effort to hide his annoyance at how things were playing out, spoke up.
"Hey, Magistrate."
"Y-Yes, Lord Jeok?"
"The affairs of the Jianghu should be settled in the manner of the Jianghu. I will settle this without harming the civilians, so you can just get the hell—"
"Indeed! You are absolutely correct! Lord Jeok's words are profoundly wise!"
"...?"
To Jeok-un's bewilderment, the magistrate began to flatter him—the very source of all this trouble.
He rubbed his hands together like a fly and bowed his head obsequiously.
He looked ready to lick Jeok-un's boots if left to his own devices, leaving even Jeok-un momentarily speechless with embarrassment.
But to Hyeon-un and Dan Gyo-ik, the display was nothing short of detestable.
Ha, is he going to pretend he has nothing to do with this until the very end? How cunning. Truly insidious.
To think he'd try to deceive us with such cheap acting. No, is he doing this on purpose? To mock us?
The two of them ground their teeth.
They were entirely convinced that Jeok-un had conspired with the magistrate to stage this entire scene.
"I have heard that Lord Jeok and Sadocheon desired a peaceful resolution!" the magistrate declared.
"Yet Black Hegemony Castle plundered another's sacred relic, and the Murim Alliance abetted them, leading to this disaster! Since you brought this calamity upon yourselves, you must withdraw from Tongseong County immediately!"
The magistrate's unilateral declaration gave Hyeon-un and Dan Gyo-ik a splitting headache.
The magistrate's command represented the stance of the government.
With the Prefectural Governor himself keeping a close eye on the situation, there was no room for negotiation or compromise.
In other words, they had been checkmated.
Tongseong County had fallen entirely into the hands of Sadocheon.
We've been outmaneuvered. There is no way out of this.
Jeok-un... What a terrifyingly devious and calculating mind.
Now that the successor to the Divine Strategist's legacy has aligned with Sadocheon, things are going to get troublesome.
Thanks to this bizarre misunderstanding, Jeok-un had inadvertently engraved his name deeply into the minds of the two major factions, the Murim Alliance and Black Hegemony Castle.
A short while later, after the two elders departed, only two people remained in the room.
Jeok-un and the magistrate of Tongseong County.
The two were left alone to speak in private.
"The next time we meet, you will not escape the sword of Wudang."
"Kyohoho. You got the better of us this time, but the next encounter will be different."
Hyeon-un and Dan Gyo-ik had left Jeok-un with those chilling parting words.
Yet, the atmosphere inside the room had shifted completely from before.
"I-I am terribly sorry!"
The magistrate bowed his head in a groveling apology, completely erasing any trace of his former authoritative demeanor.
"...?"
"I-I wanted to help you in a more subtle manner, but t-time was short... T-This was truly the best I could do!"
"??"
The magistrate's face was pale with terror as he apologized, maintaining an attitude of absolute subservience.
He looked like a hostage under threat or a criminal with a blade at his throat, allowing Jeok-un to quickly grasp the situation.
So he really was helping me for some other reason. I have a good guess as to why.
A single figure flashed through Jeok-un's mind.
Someone he had briefly crossed paths with at Poyang Lake, though their connection had cut short.
"L-Lord Jeok! Please, I beg you to look upon me favorably... Y-You know as well as I do that if I am dragged to the Dongchang... I won't survive...!"
The magistrate pleaded desperately.
One word in particular caught Jeok-un's attention: 'Dongchang.'
As expected, the one who had aided him was none other than...
Eon I-gyeom. That idiot!
It was the Black Bamboo, one of the wings of the Black Heaven Temple Lord.
Eon I-gyeom of the Dongchang.
It was painfully obvious how things had played out.
He must have pondered inside the spatial rift and reached a conclusion. He came to Poyang Lake to find his family's relic, but the relic hidden there wasn't the one he sought.
After that, it was a matter of trust.
And Eon I-gyeom had chosen to believe Jeok-un's words.
Since he had followed the traces of the Red Cliffs all the way to Poyang Lake, it was clear that Jeok-un possessed precise knowledge about the relics.
The final nail in the coffin must have been the parting words Jeok-un had left him:
"The relic of the Eon family is not here."
Since it wasn't the item he was looking for, there was no reason to despair.
If anything, Jeok-un had saved him from wasting time, which warranted gratitude.
Furthermore, the statement 'the relic of the Eon family is not here' could be interpreted as 'I know where the Eon family's relic actually is.'
Thus, true to his cautious nature, Eon I-gyeom must have decided to curry favor with Jeok-un, who knew both his identity and the treasure he sought.
The result of that calculation was the scene playing out right now.
While Jeok-un was busy fighting to obtain the Ochu, Eon I-gyeom had slipped out of the spatial rift and manipulated the magistrate of Tongseong County.
Sigh. And here I thought I'd finally get to stretch my limbs properly after all this time.
Jeok-un swallowed the sigh threatening to escape and quickly began to calculate his options.
Daoist Hyeon-un and Dan Gyo-ik had already departed.
The fight had been ruined because of the magistrate standing before him.
If that was the case, the best course of action was to extract as much benefit as possible from the current situation and exploit it to the fullest.
Having reached a decision, Jeok-un crossed his legs and spoke in an arrogant tone.
"Tsk. I'll be watching to see how you behave from now on."
"T-Thank you! I offer my sincerest congratulations on becoming the ruler of Tongseong County."
"Cut the chatter, take those men outside, and get the hell out of my sight."
"Y-Yes, sir!"
The magistrate nodded frantically and hurried toward the door, only to stop and turn back.
"Ah, also, I was told to make sure you saw this..."
The magistrate handed over a slip of paper and rushed out of the room as if his life depended on it.
Watching him flee, Jeok-un shook his head and examined the paper.
A blank sheet?
The slip of paper was completely blank.
However, there was a specific way to read it.
Jeok-un held the paper up to the flame of the oil lamp, revealing the hidden message.
I will come to see you soon.
Eon I-gyeom had sent word that he would be coming to find him.
"Ha... Haha."
Jeok-un let out a hollow laugh of disbelief.
Soon, thick veins bulged on his temples, betraying the considerable anger he felt at the situation.
Helping me is one thing. But you will pay dearly for robbing me of my fun, you bastard of a little brother.
You haven't seen my temper in this lifetime yet, have you?
Jeok-un clenched his fist so hard his knuckles cracked, thinking of Heo I-gyeom—no, Eon I-gyeom.