Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Invitation from the Sword Demon League Lord
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I told Yang-rim I needed hot water, and he asked why.
“I wish to take a bath.”
I had spoken formally to Yang-rim from the beginning, and I wanted to keep it that way.
“In that case, you should visit the hot spring.”
“There's a hot spring?”
“It's a place I discovered while gathering herbs. I will guide you.”
“Let's go.”
The thought occurred to me that perhaps I couldn't remember the martial arts I learned for three years and five months on Gwalchang Mountain because my head had frozen during my ten years of slumber in the Yin Essence Abyss.
So, I had the simple idea that if I soaked my body, especially my head, in warm water, my memories might return.
* * *
A carrier pigeon arrived for the Alliance Lord of the Martial Alliance.
His closest aide unfolded the letter and respectfully presented it to the Alliance Lord.
-Experts from the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union and the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path are gathering in Dong-ro County, Zhejiang Province. It is believed this is because an individual calling himself the Grand Branch Master of our alliance's Dong-ro Branch recently annihilated the Dong-ro regional office of the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union and subjugated the Red Flying Swallow Sword, a grand captain of the Grand Union's Sword Demon League.
As the Alliance Lord set down the letter, the aide handed him a second one.
“It is a letter from the Chief Hall Master.”
-There is a person you must meet, Alliance Lord. If you can persuade him to join our great cause for the world, it will be like gaining an army of thousands. It is a dangerous undertaking, but would it be possible for you to secretly visit Dong-ro County?-
* * *
The hot spring bath had no effect at all.
Of course, how could a mere hot spring bath thaw a head that had been frozen solid for ten years in the Yin Essence Abyss, a place where extreme yin energy had gathered for hundreds of millions of years, leaving only pure Yin Essence?
Not long after entering Dong-ro County with Yang-rim, I witnessed a certain scene.
It was a group of five or six men in brown clothes, causing a ruckus with drawn swords in front of a courtesan house.
Three warriors lay bleeding and fallen in front of the house, and beside them, three people—a man and two women—knelt side by side.
A crowd of onlookers had gathered at a distance, so I also stopped to watch. Beside me, Yang-rim explained in a whisper.
“Those are warriors from the Dong-ro regional office of the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path. Until a few days ago, that tavern was under the jurisdiction of the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union's Dong-ro office. The Ten Heavens are trying to take it over.”
“Is it because the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union's Dong-ro office was defeated by me?”
“Yes. It's because the Dong-ro office of the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union has been showing weakness lately.”
“Even though their Dong-ro office hasn't been completely wiped out?”
“They don't care about that. Most of the taverns, courtesan houses, and shops in Dong-ro County that were once under the Grand Union's control have probably already been taken over by the Ten Heavens' Dong-ro office. In short, it's the law of the jungle.”
“How absurd.”
“The only saving grace is that neither the Ten Heavens nor the Grand Union can lay a finger on anything under our branch's jurisdiction.”
The reason for that was likely my presence.
“Who are the people kneeling over there?”
“That's the tavern owner and the accountant. The fallen ones are the tavern's escort warriors.”
As I started walking again, Yang-rim spoke.
“The ones truly suffering are the county's residents.”
“What do you mean?”
“The Dong-ro offices of the Grand Union and the Ten Heavens extort monthly taxes not only from the shops but also from the residents.”
“Aren't taxes collected by the government?”
“The government, the Grand Union, and the Ten Heavens—they're all sucking the people dry from three sides. Isn't it obvious the residents' backs would be breaking?”
As we walked, Yang-rim hesitated as if he had something to say, but in the end, he remained silent.
“Do you have something to say?”
“Well…”
“Speak.”
“Grand Branch Master, could you not set things right in Dong-ro County?”
“Me?”
“Just like you did with the Grand Union's Dong-ro office, please teach the Ten Heavens' Dong-ro office a lesson.”
Yang-rim clenched his fists and spoke with force.
“Grand Branch Master, please protect Dong-ro County.”
I said nothing.
* * *
About ten days later, a letter was delivered to the Grand Branch Master of the Martial Alliance's Dong-ro Branch.
-I would like to invite you to dinner this evening.
Ziyun Pavilion, at the hour of Xin (around 7 PM).
I will be waiting. Nu Jin-sang.-
Sang Gang-jo, after reading the letter, flinched and said quietly.
“It's the Sword Demon League Lord!”
“Pan Ha-rin's master?”
“Yes.”
“Then he must be stronger than that girl.”
“Of course.”
Sang Gang-jo's face was heavy and serious.
“The Sword Demon League Lord, Nu Jin-sang, is the Sword Demon King, one of the Nine Demon Kings of the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union. He rules over eighty-four demonic sects in Zhejiang Province.”
“Is that so?”
I nodded nonchalantly.
Honestly, Sang Gang-jo's words weren't registering.
Having not fought for the past ten days, I was quite excited by the appearance of an expert stronger than Pan Ha-rin.
When I'm not fighting, I'm just an ordinary person who knows no martial arts, finding no fun in anything and no joy in living.
Only when I fight do the martial arts hidden within me come alive, and only then does my life shine, making me feel alive.
That's right! I am a fighter, and only by constantly engaging in real combat can I feel the meaning of my existence.
Sang Gang-jo must have seen the fighting spirit burning in my eyes and realized it was useless to try and stop me.
“Are you going?”
“Isn't it proper etiquette to accept an invitation?”
Sang Gang-jo seemed worried about my excited state.
“Please decide carefully.”
“Uncle Jo.”
It was the first time I had used the title "Uncle Jo," which the branch members called him.
“Please speak.”
Sang Gang-jo was very respectful to me, and I, in turn, tried to respect him. This was the natural state of our relationship. My way is to let things be as they are.
“Isn't the purpose of this man, Nu Jin-sang, to fight me anyway?”
“Yes.”
“I can't avoid it, can I?”
“You cannot.”
If the Sword Demon League Lord of the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union personally came to this rural backwater, he wouldn't leave empty-handed.
“So, I must fight.”
“There's no harm in being cautious.”
“Cautious?”
“Do you know why Nu Jin-sang has come?”
“He came to fight me, I suppose.”
“That won't be his only purpose.”
“Then what else is there?”
I'm hopeless when it comes to the kind of strategizing and scheming that so-called executives do.
But as Sang Gang-jo said, Nu Jin-sang probably didn't come all this way just to fight me.
“Furthermore, Nu Jin-sang will not have come alone.”
“I expect so.”
I had anticipated that much.
“There is still time until evening, so it would be best to find out as much as possible before you go.”
If Sang Gang-jo hadn't been here, I would have done nothing until evening and just gone to the meeting place. Then, if something happened, I would have dealt with it as it came.
I could roughly guess what Sang Gang-jo was planning. He was trying to look before he leaped, but this situation wasn't a stone bridge; it was a rickety wooden one.
Sang Gang-jo stood up and said respectfully.
“Let's go to the break room for a moment.”
The members of Team Three gathered in the break room.
For the past ten days, the members of the Dong-ro Branch had been learning martial arts from Sang Gang-jo.
An Do-pil and the other members were all from lowly martial arts halls in the countryside and had never even seen orthodox martial arts.
Sang Gang-jo had been the direct disciple of the Sect Leader of the Diancang Sect, so he was as orthodox as they come.
So, the branch members, who were learning the basics of fist and sword techniques anew from Sang Gang-jo, were experiencing a whole new world and were all thrilled.
Only An Do-pil, Hyeong In-geol, and I knew Sang Gang-jo's true identity, but the other members suspected he was no ordinary person and dared not treat him carelessly.
Besides, wasn't Sang Gang-jo the martial arts instructor of the Dong-ro Branch!
Sang Gang-jo spoke to the members of Team Three.
“Does anyone among you know someone from the Lower Hand Sect in Dong-ro County?”
“I know them well.”
Dam Geum-hu replied.
“Can you bring a capable one here?”
“I will.”
* * *
I called An Do-pil and Hyeong In-geol and told them that the Sword Demon League Lord had invited me.
As the Branch Master and the Vice Branch Master/Team Two Leader, they needed to be aware of important matters.
“Wh-what will you do?”
“I've been invited, so it's only polite to go.”
I treated An Do-pil and Hyeong In-geol with respect due to their age.
Until recently, these two had been so intimidated they couldn't even look the Dong-ro Regional Master of the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union, Wi Heun-chang, in the face.
So, when it came to the Sword Demon King, the lord of the Sword Demon League and one of the Nine Demon Kings of the Grand Union, just hearing his name would make their hearts pound and their breath catch.
But there was nothing the two of them could do.
Their only wish was for this great storm to pass as quickly as possible.
Looking back, things had been better before the arrival of the man known as the Grand Branch Master.
Ever since the Grand Branch Master—that is, me—arrived, there hadn't been a single peaceful day for the Dong-ro Branch.
* * *
The man from the Lower Hand Sect, brought by Dam Geum-hu, stood with a slightly nervous expression, glancing back and forth between Sang Gang-jo and me.
“Sit.”
Dam Geum-hu and the man from the Lower Hand Sect sat down side by side.
The man was in his late twenties, similar in age to Dam Geum-hu, tall, with handsome, sharp features.
“Captain, this is my friend, Jang Ung.”
The man, Jang Ung, stood up and bowed deeply.
“I am Jang Ung. I have been wanting to meet you.”
“Me?”
“Yes.”
I had no idea why a complete stranger from the Lower Hand Sect would want to meet me.
I took another look at this man named Jang Ung.
‘Hmm?’
My first impression of him was that he was sturdy and solid. This applied not just to his body, his physique, but to his spirit as well.
And he exuded a faint aura of energy. An aura that only someone like Sang Gang-jo or myself could detect.
As if sensing my gaze, Jang Ung met my eyes with a faint smile.
He seemed to know that I had recognized his extraordinary nature at a glance.
His eyes shimmered with a righteous light, and his temples were prominently raised. Such a light is found in the eyes of those with a firm will and a sense of justice, and temples raised that high meant he was, at the very least, a first-rate master.
‘A hidden master?’
He couldn't fool my eyes. It was unexpected for a member of the Lower Hand Sect, brought by our branch member Dam Geum-hu, to be a hidden master.
A first-rate master living in hiding as a member of the Lower Hand Sect—he must be a man with a deep story.
I would have to wait and see why he was here and how he would act.
Dam Geum-hu smiled broadly.
“You're incredibly famous, Captain!”
“I am?”
“Yes! The rumor that you crushed the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union's Dong-ro office and subjugated the Red Flying Swallow Sword, a grand captain of the Sword Demon League, is widespread!”
Dam Geum-hu was so excited he was practically spitting.
“There's probably no one in Zhejiang Province who hasn't heard about it!”
Jang Ung, it seemed, was not one for boasting. He merely kept a faint smile on his face.
It felt good, but not so much that I would get carried away.
I gave a slight nod, and Sang Gang-jo stepped forward.
“From now on, answer my questions honestly.”
“I will.”
It is said that the Beggars' Sect holds all the information in the world in its hands, but in truth, without the Lower Hand Sects, the Beggars' Sect would be nothing but a hollow shell.
The members of the Lower Hand Sects go everywhere and see and hear everything, so they have a grasp on matters in every corner of the world as if reading the lines on their own palm.
The Beggars' Sect reigns over the Lower Hand Sects, gathering and organizing the information they collect, taking only the choicest bits.
That's not to say the Beggars' Sect pays the Lower Hand Sects any price for it.
Simply put, the Beggars' Sect oppresses and rules the Lower Hand Sects through force.
The Lower Hand Sects submit only to the Beggars' Sect. Anyone else who needs information must pay a price—that is, money.