Chapter 13
Once I’d made up my mind to raid the Treasury of the Divine Thief in Zhejiang, there was no reason to linger. I set out at once.
Zhejiang wasn’t far from Jiangxi, so I spent the days using lightfoot work and the nights recovering my inner power at nearby inns. After several days of that, I finally reached Zhejiang. Even then, I didn’t stop; I kept heading toward the province’s center.
Still, this is a lot easier than running from Mount Hwa to Baek-ga.
That went without saying. When I’d traveled from Mount Hwa to Baek-ga, I hadn’t even been using lightfoot work. I’d been running on foot, plain and simple. Even as I moved, I didn’t forget to keep watch on my surroundings.
Zhejiang. On the surface, this was Bota Sect territory. But the martial artists I saw while moving through the province were not Bota Sect disciples.
Namgung, Cheolhyeol-seong, and, from time to time, wandering Daoists from Mosan Sect.
From the start, Bota Sect was a mysterious sect that hated exposing itself to the outside world. It was so extreme that even I, once the greatest man in the world, had never seen a single Bota Sect disciple.
There were only rumors floating around, saying they were a sect made up entirely of Buddhist nuns, or that they only appeared when the martial world stood on the brink of ruin.
Then again, even when Tiger Mask was slaughtering his way through the Central Plains, they never showed themselves.
And so, although Bota Sect existed, it did not exert any real influence over Zhejiang. Sensing that, the regional powers adjacent to Zhejiang began to show interest and extend their reach.
There were four regions bordering Zhejiang.
Namgung Family of Anhui.
Cheolhyeol-seong of Fujian.
Mosan Sect of Jiangsu.
And Jiangxi.
Jiangxi had no force that had seized regional supremacy to begin with, so it had no interest in Zhejiang. But Anhui’s Namgung and Fujian’s Cheolhyeol-seong did not bother hiding their ambition, and at a rapid pace they were swallowing Zhejiang’s interests whole.
And in the end, Zhejiang’s profits were split cleanly in half.
- Nreuk Inn.
It was centered around this Nreuk Inn. I stopped my lightfoot work and walked inside.
This is ridiculous. They haven’t drawn their swords, but that’s about the only difference.
The inn’s interior was a sight to behold. On the left side sat Namgung Family martial artists in white robes, while on the right sat Cheolhyeol-seong martial artists in dark red robes.
They were glaring at one another with fierce killing intent. The moment I stepped inside, every gaze flicked to me briefly before turning back to each other and the pressure in the room rose all over again.
Normally, when a guest entered an inn, the server would come out to greet them. But the pressure spilling off these two sides made it impossible for either the proprietor or the servers to move freely.
I looked around for an empty seat. There wasn’t a single one to the left or right. Only one remained, dead center between the two factions.
Almost as if that seat were the line dividing the room into two exact halves.
Tap, tap, tap.
Other than the sound of my footsteps, nothing else could be heard. From the instant I took my first step, the pressure both sides had been hurling at each other began targeting me instead.
But I ignored that nonsense completely and sat down in the middle seat. Then I called out to the owner and the server.
“One bowl of noodles, one order of dumplings! Ah, and make it a bottle of bamboo-leaf green too!”
The proprietor looked blank for a moment at my words.
“Are you not doing business?”
“Ah... yes, yes! I’ll bring it right away!”
At my words, the proprietor came to his senses and hurried into the kitchen. The instant I ordered, the martial artists from Namgung and Cheolhyeol-seong seemed so stunned that their pressure lessened for a moment.
But once that brief instant passed, the pressure turned fully on me instead. It was as though an uninvited guest had shown up and seated himself at their table.
“...Sir. Your food has arrived.”
The server set the dishes down with obvious hesitation, then quickly turned away the moment they touched the table.
“Looks like you’re busy because there are so many customers.”
That was what I said, but there was no way they were actually busy. Neither side had ordered a single thing; they were only occupying seats. Yes. The reason they were all planted in this inn was a kind of show of force.
Slurp!
I started eating and drinking as if no one else were here at all. And just as I was finishing the noodles, one of the Cheolhyeol-seong martial artists walked over and sat in the seat across from me.
“Brother. What’s so special about this place that you’d sit right in the middle?”
“Because this was the only seat in the inn. Isn’t that reason enough?”
The Cheolhyeol-seong martial artist was difficult to describe as anything other than grotesque. He gave me a hard look, then suddenly broke into laughter.
“I see! Of course, that’s reason enough. This was the only seat, so you sat here? You’re an interesting one!”
He grabbed the bottle sitting in front of me and drank straight from it.
“Hah! I’d been bored out of my mind, and I run into a fun fellow like you. Fine. What’s your name?”
“You’re awfully rude. Isn’t it basic courtesy for the one asking to introduce himself first?”
“Kahaha! Rude? That’s the first time I’ve ever heard that one in my life!”
He laughed like some common street thug. Then he fixed his expression and spoke.
“I’m Won Woo-hyeop of Cheolhyeol-seong.”
“Baek Mugeuk.”
“Baek Mugeuk... I don’t know that name...”
“......”
When I didn’t respond for a moment, he patted my back as if comforting me.
“Looks like you’re new to the martial world. There’s no one whose name is known from the very beginning. Everyone starts out the same way! Hahaha!”
Won Woo-hyeop laughed heartily, but unlike his laughter, he began to release his qi and try to bear down on me.
At that moment, a martial artist from the Namgung side also came over, perched on the edge of my table, and said, “That’s enough. If you intend to use your faction’s name to intimidate Baek martial artists, Namgung won’t stand for it.”
“Oh? The second young master of the great Namgung Family can speak after all. I always thought you were mute, the way you only ever glare.”
“I have no hobby of conversing with beasts.”
“Beasts? You sure do spout whatever comes to mind just because you’ve got a mouth, Namgung Gyeom.”
“And what are those who grab for their swords the moment they’re provoked, if not beasts?”
The two of them glared at each other, pouring out killing intent as if I didn’t exist at all. Namgung Gyeom’s expression never changed, as if he had no emotions to begin with, while Won Woo-hyeop’s mouth curled to one side in a thin, sneering smile.
Namgung Gyeom of Namgung, and Won Woo-hyeop of Cheolhyeol-seong.
This was my first time seeing either of them. When I’d been active in the martial world, neither of them had been alive yet.
The struggle over influence in Zhejiang had, in the end, become a duel between these two. Without ever clashing directly, they had divided the province between them. But once the division created overlap, the conflict deepened. And it was at the brink of open violence that it was discovered.
The Treasury of the Divine Thief.
From that point on, events unfolded in the way anyone could have predicted. The two sides began fighting for the treasury, and later this came to be called the treasury struggle.
The impact that struggle left on the martial world was considerable. Both heirs apparent to Namgung and Cheolhyeol-seong died there.
“Fine. Then I’ll show you exactly what a beast looks like.”
“If you draw that saber, you’ll die today for sure.”
“Die? Who? Me?”
Won Woo-hyeop let out a wicked laugh and drew his saber while releasing a burst of killing qi. His blade shot toward Namgung Gyeom. At the same time, Namgung Gyeom also released his own pressure and drew his sword to answer Won Woo-hyeop’s saber.
“Troublesome bastards, the lot of you, right from the start.”
Kiiiiiik!
As steel met steel, a screeching sound burst forth, grating painfully on the ears.
Everyone in the inn surely thought it was the sound of their blades clashing. But before their swords could even meet, mine cut between them faster.
The instant a new blade entered that line of steel, both men reflexively leaped backward and returned to their respective sides.
“What the hell are you doing, Baek Mugeuk?”
“What?”
“How dare some nameless nobody like you sit in a place like that...!”
“You mean drawing your sword? Funny how Sapa bastards are always the same.”
“...So you’re not an amusing fool after all. You’re just crazy. How about I kill you first, before I kill that Namgung bastard?”
Won Woo-hyeop slung his saber over his shoulder and sneered. But despite the playful look on his face, a thick, sticky killing intent began to surge off him.
“Young hero. That sort of beast poses no threat to Namgung. Step aside.”
“Heh-heh-heh. Do Namgung men have necks made of ten-thousand-year cold iron or something? Is that why your sword won’t go in?”
“I wonder if you’ll still be able to say that after seeing Namgung’s sword.”
“I’m wondering the same about you. What kind of face you’ll make when my blade’s buried in your neck.”
Without another word, the two of them took their stances.
One breath from violence. That phrase fit perfectly. The instant their blades were unleashed, the conflict between Orthodox and Unorthodox would become the starting point.
I had to twist it. Yes. I was here to twist that history.
I looked at the two of them in turn, then smiled faintly. At my smile, both wore puzzled expressions.
“I’m Baek Mugeuk of Jiangxi. As that fellow said earlier, I’m just a nameless nobody. I have one thing to ask you.”
At my words, both their gazes turned to me at once.
“What is it that you want?”
Won Woo-hyeop burst into hearty laughter, as though the question itself were absurd.
“Kahaha! Zhejiang’s a land without a master, so of course I came to claim it for Cheolhyeol-seong!”
At Won Woo-hyeop’s words, Namgung Gyeom’s eyes sharpened. Then he, too, spoke.
“Silence. Zhejiang is, by rights, territory of the Orthodox faction.”
“Orthodox territory, is it? This isn’t Anhui. Why is Namgung making such a fuss here?”
Neither seemed willing to budge an inch. They were watching each other closely, waiting for the slightest opening to strike. But my question to them wasn’t over yet.
“No. Don’t hide behind such pitiful excuses as your clan or Cheolhyeol-seong. I mean what you want, Namgung Gyeom and Won Woo-hyeop.”
For a moment, both of them wore odd expressions. Then they erased those expressions in an instant. And at the same time, they answered.
“To seize Zhejiang!”
“To protect Zhejiang!”
I looked at them and lifted my sword.
“You’re ridiculous.”
I drew the blade downward and carved a line into the floor.
“This line is the boundary neither of you is to cross.”
“Baek Mugeuk. I think you’re the one I need to kill first. You haven’t stopped spouting nonsense.”
“Young hero. This is your final warning. Move aside.”
I clasped my hands behind my back, turned around, and walked toward the inn stairs.
“I know the location of the Treasury of the Divine Thief.”
“......”
“......”
At my words, the two of them fell silent as if they had agreed to it beforehand.
“The moment Orthodox and Unorthodox cross that line and bare their blades, the treasury will burn, and everything inside it will vanish.”
By the time I reached the inn’s second floor, I turned around and looked down at the martial artists from Namgung and Cheolhyeol-seong.
Then the martial artists from Namgung and Cheolhyeol-seong began to laugh at the same time.
“Baek Mugeuk. Are you calling that a threat? The Treasury of the Divine Thief? You expect anyone to believe such a legend?”
“Young hero. There will be no more warnings. If you thought you could shake us with that kind of idle rumor, you’re mistaken.”
“Really? Then go ahead. Cross that line and finish what you were doing. I’ll just sit here and watch.”
I pulled a chair out on the inn’s second floor and sat down.
“What, do you want me to start like this? ‘Get ready—begin!’ Is that how you want it?”
“......”
“......”
The two men who had seemed on the verge of drawing their swords slowly lowered them. Then they turned away.
“My interest’s gone cold. Orthodox bastards really do talk nonsense like that.”
“Don’t lump the Orthodox faction together because of one man. What you’ve done today, you’ll pay for.”
The two of them left the inn in opposite directions. The Namgung and Cheolhyeol-seong martial artists followed after them.
In an instant, the inn was filled with silence, as if there had never been any trouble at all.
“Looks like the Treasury of the Divine Thief is quite the prize after all.”
I rose from the chair. Then I lifted my sword and tapped a pillar lightly.
Tap.
“Isn’t that right?”
The moment the blade touched the wall, two talismans hanging above the pillar caught fire, revealing the figure of a man wearing a Taoist cap.
“Watching from the shadows isn’t exactly my idea of fun.”
The man in the Taoist cap frowned and stared at me.