Chapter 55
Chapter 55
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: Admission Review for the Dong-ro Branch!
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I sat facing Jang Ung in my room. Of course, Go Un-hyo stood behind me.
“We've identified about ninety percent of the suspected assassins who have entered Dong-ro County.”
“Ninety percent?”
“My apologies. The remaining ten percent consists of four individuals. We've only managed to learn that two of them are working together, while the other two are acting independently.”
I was impressed that Jang Ung had identified ninety percent of the assassins, while he felt guilty for failing to identify the other ten.
“I will gather information on them as quickly as possible and uncover their identities.”
A maid from the Dong-ro Branch brought tea and left.
“How many people make up the ninety percent you've identified?”
“About one hundred and twenty.”
“More than I thought.”
The fact that there were over one hundred and twenty people suspected of plotting to assassinate me was a bit surprising. It meant my value was that high.
“About fifty are assassins from the Northern Underworld Bureau, thirty-five from the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path, ten from the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union, and the remaining twenty-five are from various sects and factions.”
It was almost strange how the Northern Underworld Bureau, the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path, and the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union relentlessly sent their experts, even after being taught such a harsh lesson.
I spoke to the stiffly standing Go Un-hyo.
“Un-hyo, sit down.”
“I'm fine.”
Jang Ung gently chided Go Un-hyo.
“When the Lord tells you to sit, you should sit.”
Without a word, Go Un-hyo took a chair and sat by the window.
“There's a reason why the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path and the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union have sent more experts, even after suffering so much.”
Jang Ung had a knack for pinpointing exactly what I was curious about and explaining it.
“The thirty-five members from the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path who came this time were selected from their subordinate factions within Zhejiang Province, independent of the main sect or the Zhejiang branch.”
“Aren't there ninety-five factions under the Zhejiang branch?”
“They selected the thirty-five strongest experts from among them. It seems they thought that would be enough to handle you, my lord.”
“Hmph!”
I suddenly found it laughable.
“It has nothing to do with the main sect of the Ten Heavens or the Zhejiang branch; the subordinate factions made the decision.”
“How did you find that out?”
“The Beggars' Sect branches spread throughout all the counties in Zhejiang Province send us information via carrier pigeon.”
“For no pay?”
“So far, yes. It's what you would call mutual aid.”
“So you also provide them with information they request?”
“That's right. Nothing is free. However, if you command me to stop, my lord, I will.”
I waved my hand.
“I was just curious. I'll leave it to your discretion.”
“Thank you.”
Jang Ung continued his explanation.
“Second, the ten from the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union are the Demonic Emperor's Life-Reaping Squad.”
“The Demonic Emperor's Life-Reaping Squad?”
I flinched involuntarily. It wasn't my body that reacted, but my mind—my memories.
“You know of them?”
“Mm. I do.”
There was a saying I heard constantly during my days as a low-ranking warrior of the Martial Alliance.
-The unluckiest day of your life is the day you meet the Life-Reaping Squad and the Soul-Devouring Wolves.-
The Demonic Emperor's Life-Reaping Squad of the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union and the Soul-Devouring Wolves of the Unorthodox Path from the Ten Heavens were each composed of the supreme experts of their respective factions.
I had once encountered an expert from the Demonic Emperor's Life-Reaping Squad back when I was a low-ranking warrior in the Martial Alliance.
Of course, I never fought them. If I had, I wouldn't be here today.
A hundred of us—twenty high-ranking, thirty mid-ranking, and fifty low-ranking warriors of the Martial Alliance—had gone on a mission to annihilate a demonic faction, serving as backup for thirty elite experts of the Alliance.
With this much force, we could obliterate a mid-tier demonic faction within a couple of hours. That's how powerful the Martial Alliance's elite experts were.
The thirty elite experts would lead the attack on the demonic faction, and we warriors would just clean up the fleeing enemies. It was literally a supporting role, an easy mission.
But when the attack finally began, we were thrown into a state of panic in an instant.
As soon as the thirty elite experts from the Martial Alliance entered the demonic faction's territory, the enemy's attack rained down as if they had been lying in wait.
It was a perfect trap.
Then, an unbelievable sight unfolded before the eyes of us warriors following behind.
The enemies that the thirty elite experts of the Martial Alliance were fighting so fiercely were, absurdly, only five people.
The experts of the demonic faction just watched from a distance.
To state only the result, the thirty elite experts of the Martial Alliance were completely annihilated in a mere quarter of an hour.
And we fled with all our might.
I later learned that the five people at the demonic faction were experts from the Demonic Emperor's Life-Reaping Squad.
Five members of the Life-Reaping Squad had slaughtered all thirty of the Martial Alliance's elite experts, leaving no one alive.
And now, ten such experts from the Life-Reaping Squad had come to Dong-ro County. To kill me.
Jang Ung looked at me with a puzzled expression and asked.
“My lord, why are you smiling?”
“Hm? Was I smiling?”
“Yes. You were smiling with satisfaction.”
I didn't realize I was smiling. It seems I smiled reflexively out of excitement.
“Hahaha! I suppose it's the thought of fighting a strong opponent.”
“You truly are remarkable.”
Jang Ung didn't seem too concerned that ten members of the Life-Reaping Squad had come to Dong-ro County. That's how much he trusted me.
***
So Yang-gun spoke seriously.
“You must decide now.”
“We'll stick with the Dong-ro Branch.”
My answer was simple and clear.
This meant we weren't establishing a Martial Alliance headquarters or a Hangzhou regional branch, but simply pushing forward as the Dong-ro Branch.
Jang Ung and Sang Gang-jo smiled faintly, while So Yang-gun looked troubled.
“Once the admission review for the martial artists is over, we'll have at least several hundred members. There's no branch in the world of that size.”
“The Dong-ro Branch will be the first.”
“Sir.”
“Anything else to say?”
It seemed So Yang-gun had prepared a few points in advance.
“To accommodate several hundred people, we'll have to massively expand the Dong-ro Branch.”
“We will.”
So Yang-gun said cautiously.
“What about the cost?”
The Martial Alliance headquarters was essentially nomadic; how could they have ample funds? So Yang-gun seemed worried about that.
“I can cover that much.”
“How much do you have budgeted for the expansion?”
Jang Ung was an expert in these matters.
“The Dong-ro Branch is too small to accommodate everyone. There are two options. One is to purchase a large plot of land and build anew. That would cost around fifty to seventy thousand silver taels.”
“And the other?”
“To purchase a suitable manor within Dong-ro County. As it happens, I have one in mind.”
“Excellent.”
So Yang-gun asked.
“How much would the manor cost?”
“They're asking for thirty thousand silver taels.”
“That's cheaper than expanding.”
“Indeed.”
So Yang-gun spoke up.
“Thirty thousand silver taels is by no means a small sum.”
A hundred silver taels could support a family for a year, so thirty thousand was an enormous amount.
Jang Ung said modestly.
“I can afford that amount.”
To be able to casually afford thirty thousand silver taels in a rural place like this... for the first time, So Yang-gun became curious about what kind of man Jang Ung was.
***
Today was the day of the admission review for applicants to the Martial Alliance's Dong-ro Branch.
Jang Ung, Mak Pyo, An Do-pil, and Hyeong In-geol were seated at the table for the document screening. Mak Pyo was the General Manager of the Martial Alliance's Hangzhou regional branch.
Inside the main gate of the Dong-ro Branch, thirty applicants were gathered, while outside the closed gate, about a hundred more waited for their turn.
Applicants had to pass the document screening to proceed to the martial arts evaluation.
The first applicant stood before the screening table.
An Do-pil looked at the documents and expressed his admiration.
“The White Tiger Sect? Isn't that a prestigious sect from the northern region of Zhejiang Province?”
“Yes, it is!”
The applicant said proudly.
A standard application is signed and sealed by the head of one's sect or faction, making it very difficult to forge.
“Moreover, if you're from the esteemed Mo Family of Geumsan County, there's nothing more to see.”
The documents passed from An Do-pil and Hyeong In-geol to Jang Ung. They detailed which generation of disciple the applicant was from the White Tiger Sect, whose student he was, his level and progress in martial arts, and his family background.
Since there were no issues with the documents, they were passed to the final reviewer, Mak Pyo.
Mak Pyo, holding the weighty position of General Manager of the Martial Alliance's Hangzhou regional branch, read the documents meticulously before looking up at the applicant.
“State your age, name, and title.”
“I am twenty-two years old, my name is Mo Hui-mun, and I do not have a title yet.”
“Why do you wish to join the Martial Alliance?”
The applicant, Mo Hui-mun, answered humbly yet resolutely.
“I wish to realize justice under a true hero of this era!”
“And who is this true hero?”
“The Fire Dragon Sword, the great hero Ak Bi-ryong, of course!”
Mak Pyo nodded.
“Pass!”
“Thank you!”
“Go to the martial arts evaluation area over there.”
Mo Hui-mun took the documents and ran toward the martial arts evaluation area with a joyful expression.
“Next!”
The second applicant ran to the screening table.
The martial arts evaluation area was a temporary dueling stage, one foot high and three zhang wide on all sides.
A short distance from the stage sat myself, So Yang-gun, and Do Hyeon-tak, the Regional Master of the Martial Alliance's Hangzhou branch.
Sang Gang-jo couldn't show his face, so he was in a separate building.
Mo Hui-mun, having passed the document screening, ran over as if flying and stood before the four of us, including myself.
“Greetings! I am Mo Hui-mun, a fifteenth-generation disciple from the White Tiger Sect!”
He shouted at the top of his lungs, then politely offered me the documents with both hands.
As I was looking at the documents, Mo Hui-mun clasped his fist in his palm, bowed, and shouted again.
“It is an honor to meet the Fire Dragon Sword, Great Hero Ak!”
“How did you recognize me?”
“Someone told me that the most handsome man in the Dong-ro Branch is the Fire Dragon Sword!”
So Yang-gun smiled faintly.
“You've got the wrong man. I am the Fire Dragon Sword.”
Mo Hui-mun flinched, then looked back and forth between me and So Yang-gun.
So Yang-gun didn't give up.
“Am I not more handsome?”
“I heard that Great Hero Ak is in his early twenties.”
“Ah!”
“Forgive my impertinence, but you appear to be in your forties.”
“Ahem!”
So Yang-gun cleared his throat awkwardly.
Do Hyeon-tak stood up and pointed to the dueling stage.
“Get on the stage.”
To an applicant for the Dong-ro Branch, the Regional Master of the Martial Alliance's Hangzhou branch was a figure as high as the heavens, but here, Do Hyeon-tak was merely supervising the martial arts evaluation.
He wouldn't even do this at the Hangzhou branch. But in the Dong-ro Branch, his rank was much lower.
Beside the stage, about a dozen branch members, including Dam Geum-hu, Deung Bo, and Yeon Cheong, were lined up, looking imposing.
For the past couple of months, the branch members had been learning the martial arts of the Diancang Sect from Sang Gang-jo.
Although it had only been a couple of months, they had trained without a single day of rest, forgetting to sleep at night, and had reached a considerable level.
Sang Gang-jo taught the branch members the Diancang Sect's Mysterious Heaven Heart Art and the Sixteen Linked Fists and Kicks.
Originally, the plan was to teach them the Sun-Piercing Sword Art after about three months, once the branch members had somewhat mastered the Sixteen Linked Fists and Kicks.
However, thanks to their bloody efforts, the branch members' skills improved by leaps and bounds, so Sang Gang-jo began teaching them the Sun-Piercing Sword Art fifteen days ago.
According to Sang Gang-jo, the branch members' current martial arts level was intermediate, and they were skilled enough to easily crush the members of other branches.
Knowing this, I came to a realization. Mastering martial arts wasn't about how long or how hard you trained, but what kind of martial arts you trained in.