Chapter 20
Chapter 20
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Glorious Martial Emperor Festival (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
'With four squad members, I should divide it evenly into four parts. Let's see... Should I give some to Sa Sa Un too?'
Having made up his mind, Se Yeong called out loudly for Paeng Se Gi.
"Se Gi!"
Hearing his voice, Paeng Se Gi—who had been practicing martial arts outside—came running.
"Did you call for me, Brother?"
"You have a dagger on you, right?"
At Se Yeong's question, Paeng Se Gi rummaged through his robes.
"Ah... yes. Here it is."
Se Yeong took the dagger from him and precisely divided the spirit medicine into five equal parts.
"Brother. What is that? It smells incredible."
"Spirit medicine."
"Pardon...? Spirit medicine?"
Startled, Paeng Se Gi's tiger-like eyes widened.
He had consumed a spirit pill once when he was young.
But after that, he hadn't even laid eyes on one.
Spirit medicine didn't grant decades of internal energy in an instant, but it was undeniably helpful.
"Act like you don't know."
"Understood, Brother."
When Se Yeong stepped outside, Sa Sa Un was preparing dinner.
'Why do I have to cook for these bastards?'
Sa Sa Un felt like dunking his nose into the dishwater and dying.
But he couldn't say it out loud.
If he did, that Han Se Yeong would probably beat him to death for real.
'Thieving sons of bitches.'
The Tenth Squad was a den of thieves.
Every night, Hahu Yeon stole various ingredients from the food storehouse, and the squad members took it as a given.
And now he was cooking with the stolen goods. How utterly humiliating.
"Is it dinnertime already?"
As Se Yeong sat down first, Sa Sa Un hurriedly brought out rice and soup.
"Where did you learn to cook?"
"M-my family runs an inn. I managed it until I joined the Murim Alliance."
Se Yeong nodded and picked up his chopsticks.
Paeng Se Gi and the squad members also sat at the table and began eating.
Crunch crunch...
"This is honey-sweet. As expected, Sa Un's cooking is top-notch. Open an inn later, and you'll rake in the silver."
Paeng Se Gi, chewing fish bones and all from the soup, praised the cooking until his mouth went dry.
It had improved a lot, but it still fell short of a master chef's skill.
Sa Sa Un, poking at his food in the corner of the table, cursed inwardly up a storm.
'That pig bastard is jinxing me. Maybe I should poison the rice.'
For a martial artist, being made a cook was an insult.
He had joined the Murim Alliance dreaming of becoming a hero of the jianghu, for his family's sake.
"Have you looked into what I mentioned?"
Se Yeong asked the squad members as they ate.
"Yes. We patrol the Murim Alliance for half a shichen every day, but we haven't found anything like what you described, Brother."
"I've been checking around too."
Se Yeong continued eating as he listened to their replies.
He hadn't expected to find the Ilbo so easily from the start.
"Focus on the older buildings."
"Got it, Brother. But the Gwangmu Festival is coming up soon. What should our squad do?"
'The Gwangmu Festival is approaching already.'
Se Yeong had heard the rumors and knew what it was.
The Gwangmu Festival commemorated the Infinite Sword Immortal's victory over the Demonic Cult.
Held once a year for five days, it featured the display of the Demon Lord's Sword to the jianghu folk and a martial tournament.
"What do you want to do?"
At Se Yeong's question, Paeng Se Gi boldly stated his thoughts.
"I'd like to enter the tournament, Brother."
"No. Maybe next year, but not this one."
He shot it down immediately.
"Understood, Brother."
"Why don't you give it a try, Hero Han? If you enter, you'd surely win."
Se Yeong showed a bit of interest at Dang Ok Yi's words.
"What's the prize for winning?"
"Usually a fine sword. If the winner or runner-up is an unknown jianghu warrior, they get recruited into the Heavenly Martial Squad. It's a golden ticket for jianghu folk."
Haha...
Se Yeong chuckled and shook his head at Dang Ok Yi's words.
"I don't want to block jianghu warriors' paths to success."
"Wise choice, Brother. Can't have you crashing the kids' fun."
Sa Sa Un, picking at his food on the side, kept glancing at Paeng Se Gi.
'No sycophant like that in the world. Built like a bull, but his mouth's lighter than a duck's feather.'
As dinner ended, Se Yeong said to Sa Sa Un,
"Don't repeat the same dishes, or it'll get boring. Try something new."
"Y-yes, Hero Han."
Sa Sa Un bowed his head quickly.
But inside, he was unleashing a torrent of curses.
'I'm not even a cook... I only know a few recipes... What kind of heaven lets demons like this roam free?'
The squad members didn't curse or harass him.
In fact, they treated him well.
But Sa Sa Un hated this Tenth Squad more than hell.
Unaware of his inner turmoil, Se Yeong pulled a wooden box from his robes.
Five lumps of dark spirit medicine rolled out, and Hahu Yeon asked,
"What is that, Hero Han?"
"Something good for the body. Eat one each."
As soon as Se Yeong finished speaking, Paeng Se Gi snatched a piece and popped it into his mouth.
Following his lead, Yi Cheon Yeong and Dang Ok Yi each took a piece.
But Hahu Yeon hesitated to reach out.
He had ruined his face as a child by taking a dubious tonic that mimicked spirit medicine.
"It's fine. Go ahead and eat."
At Paeng Se Gi's words, he reluctantly took a piece.
"You eat too."
Se Yeong offered the last piece to Sa Sa Un.
"N-no, I'm fine. I'm... too sturdy for tonics like that."
Sa Sa Un cautiously declined.
What made them trust that suspicious stuff?
Besides, Han Se Yeong wouldn't offer him anything good.
"You sure?"
Se Yeong asked once more.
"Y-yes. I have dishes to wash, so I'll get to it."
Sa Sa Un busied himself clearing empty bowls.
"Can't force you if you don't want it."
Se Yeong pocketed the remaining piece.
Yi Cheon Yeong, Dang Ok Yi, and Hahu Yeon had no idea what they'd eaten.
They'd just taken it because Se Yeong offered.
"What did we eat, Hero Han?"
"Wait a bit."
The squad members tilted their heads at his reply.
The rich medicinal aroma spreading in their mouths suggested it wasn't bad, but they couldn't identify it.
"It's here! It's coming!"
Suddenly, Paeng Se Gi let out a strange cry and sat cross-legged in the center of the training ground.
Ugh...!
Yi Cheon Yeong stared blankly before letting out a stifled groan.
His face flushed red as he rushed to the training ground and sat beside Paeng Se Gi.
Dang Ok Yi and Hahu Yeon followed in a hurry.
Sa Sa Un, carrying empty bowls, gawked at the sight.
'W-what? Are they circulating energy? Then... what they ate was...'
As a martial artist himself, he knew exactly what spirit medicine was.
They wouldn't circulate energy from street peddlers' pills.
"What... is this?"
To refuse spirit medicine fed right to him.
Was there an idiot like that anywhere?
Sa Sa Un unwittingly looked at Se Yeong.
But Se Yeong's reaction was ice-cold.
"Stay quiet until they finish circulating."
"U-understood."
Sa Sa Un bowed his head, eyes welling up.
Haaa...
Paeng Se Gi opened his eyes with a deep, long breath and stood.
Spirit medicine didn't grant decades of internal energy at once.
It merely purified one's energy and meridians a bit.
But for a martial artist honing their internal energy, it was a great help.
Approaching Se Yeong, he bowed deeply.
Turning, he watched the squad members still cultivating.
Yi Cheon Yeong opened his eyes first, followed by Dang Ok Yi and Hahu Yeon.
"Thank you so much, Hero Han."
Deeply grateful, the squad members bowed to Se Yeong in unison.
How many in the world would share such precious spirit medicine?
Probably none.
"Hahu Yeon, your face looks better."
Se Yeong smiled at Hahu Yeon.
The squad members examined his face.
Indeed, as Se Yeong said, Hahu Yeon's skin glowed more, his complexion brighter.
"R-really?"
Shocked, Hahu Yeon touched his face and dashed inside the lodging.
He wanted to check a mirror.
Se Yeong took out his wooden box and popped the last piece into his mouth.
"Don't peek."
Haha...
"Would we? Hurry back, Brother."
Se Yeong smiled and headed into the forest.
"What are you doing there?"
Sa Sa Un, slumped with head bowed, scrambled up.
"N-nothing."
"Get the dishes washed quick."
"Yes."
Sa Sa Un bustled about, grinding his teeth inside.
'Eating spirit medicine without me. Just you wait, you bastards. I'll get revenge.'
As the Gwangmu Festival neared, famous warriors from all regions began gathering.
Elders of the murim arrived early at the Alliance, while aspiring jianghu folk swarmed nearby villages.
But Se Yeong paid them no mind.
"This little brother checked, and this building is the oldest in the Murim Alliance, Brother."
Se Yeong looked up at the plaque of the dilapidated large building.
Murim Armory.
It seemed to be a library housing martial arts manuals.
Inside, a musty moldy smell assaulted the nose.
Shelves were packed with books.
"Armory in name only—no important manuals here."
As Paeng Se Gi said, there were far more classics like the Analects and Mencius than martial manuals.
Se Yeong ignored the books and inspected beams, pillars, floor, and walls.
But no trace of the dharma text anywhere.
"When was the Alliance Leader's hall built?"
"The current one was built fifty years ago. The old one is used by the Strategist. Originally, the Leader's hall was in the center, but they built a new one in the back."
Haaa...
A long sigh escaped Se Yeong.
Where the hell was the Ilbo?
He'd checked every old hall for days, but no dharma text traces.
"I'll search alone now. Head back to the lodging."
"Got it, Brother."
Sending Paeng Se Gi off, Se Yeong left the library and headed for the newer halls.
Having checked the old ones, now for the new.
As he walked, his gaze drifted to the tall ramparts.
'What if I've been looking in the wrong places?'
Hide the Ilbo between rampart stones, and no one would find it.
Se Yeong changed direction toward the walls.
The Alliance had expanded; new walls adjoined the old.
Approaching, Se Yeong suddenly felt a chill.
Not ordinary energy.
'Demonic qi?'
Demonic qi in the Murim Alliance?
It was so faint, ordinary experts wouldn't notice.
Se Yeong followed the flow.
Soon, he spotted an old man performing a sword dance.
Ssshh... Sssh...
The energy emanating with slicing sword winds was unmistakably demonic qi.