Chapter 49
Translator: penny
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Encounter with the Martial Emperor
Five days had passed since I left the Eun Merchant Group.
Finally, I crossed through the Hebei region and arrived in Liaoning.
But there was a minor issue.
"Aw, this godforsaken backwater!"
The problem was that once I left Hebei, there was still a long way to the nearest proper city.
The village I visited today was so small it didn't even have a single brothel.
Which meant I had to awkwardly seek out an inn instead.
'Why do these Moyong bastards live in such a remote dump?'
To be honest, at my level, sleeping outdoors was no big deal, but if I had the choice, wouldn't a soft bed be better?
Besides, when I left the Eun Merchant Group, Eun Garyeon had stuffed my pockets with plenty of silver as pocket money.
The amount was a whopping twenty gold nyang.
Not silver—gold.
Of course, it was nowhere near the hundred gold nyang I was owed or the two hundred on the IOU, but I never intended to collect those in the first place.
This was more than enough to live comfortably without money worries for a whole year.
But what good was it?
There was nowhere to spend it right now.
This podunk village had just one tiny little inn, and that was it.
I let out a deep sigh and stepped into the inn.
I was about to bellow my usual order for the waiter when I froze.
"Waiter, I'll ha…."
Because someone I shouldn't have seen was right there.
'Why the hell are they here?!'
My heart plummeted for a second.
But I desperately controlled my expression and voice, acting casual as I continued.
"Which nearby city is the closest?"
It came out natural.
The waiter didn't suspect a thing and answered.
"Oh, if you head west for a day, you'll hit Mansung City."
The waiter was telling me about a place I'd already passed.
But I didn't let on, just nodded gratefully.
"Got it. I'll be off then. Thanks for your trouble."
I successfully slipped out of the inn without a hitch.
To be safe, I waited until I was well away before sighing in relief.
'Whew… that was close.'
The reason I'd panicked so badly was those two men eating inside the inn.
One handsome middle-aged man who looked about fifty, and one clean-cut young man.
The middle-aged one was the key figure.
'Holy shit, why is the Martial Emperor here?'
He was none other than Cheon Seonwoo, the Martial Emperor, undoubtedly the World's Greatest Martial Artist of his generation.
And the young guy next to him was his son, Cheon Woojin.
Cheon Seonwoo wouldn't appear in the martial world for another two years.
He first showed up when he ended the righteous-demonic great war.
Prior to that, no one knew a thing about his whereabouts….
'And I run into him here?'
Of course, it wasn't that strange.
Running into strangers on the road happened all the time.
The problem was that the stranger was Cheon Seonwoo.
After leaving the inn, I circulated my breath a few times, and my pounding heart began to calm.
'Whew, it's fine. I'm not the Lecherous Demon anymore, and he's not the Martial Emperor yet either.'
His martial arts attainment was already worthy of the title, but for now, he was just Cheon Seonwoo.
We were total strangers.
Still, it felt off, so I left the village straightaway and unleashed my lightness skill.
Looks like I'd be roughing it outdoors tonight.
"Ptooey, talk about bad luck."
In this vast Central Plains, what were the odds?
Now I wouldn't even get dinner.
The Martial Emperor, Cheon Seonwoo.
Back in my Lecherous Demon days, our bad blood ran deep.
He was the biggest reason I died, after all.
'Cheon Suyeon.'
The World's Greatest Beauty, Cheon Suyeon, whom I'd forcibly taken, was his granddaughter.
Furious, the Martial Emperor had chased me down too late to kill me,
-How the hell do you know the Heavenly Apex Sword Art…!
I could still picture the Martial Emperor's shock when I unleashed the technique I'd gotten from Cheon Suyeon.
Thanks to that, I managed to land one hit and escape.
Of course, that was only possible because I'd reached the Transcendent Realm by then—impossible now.
'I thought I'd never cross paths with him in my lifetime….'
As I said, Cheon Seonwoo was a man of mysterious past.
Even after earning the Martial Emperor title, he didn't do much.
He simply founded the Cheon Family in the Jiangxi region and lived quietly there his whole life.
Unlike his son or his son-in-law Baek Rihyeon, who killed me and actively made names for themselves in the righteous sects.
Cheon Seonwoo just stayed put in the Cheon Family.
'Well, that was until his granddaughter got raped by me.'
Anyway, I'd figured as long as I stayed away from the Cheon Family, I'd never run into him.
That was why I could teach Jang the Heavenly Apex Sword Art.
'Hmm… now that I think about it, isn't it weird that they're here?'
The Sword Phoenix Moyong Hui I was heading to meet was Cheon Seonwoo's daughter-in-law.
And the wife of that Cheon Woojin kid from earlier.
Of course, their marriage was still three years away, so it wasn't that odd for them to be nearby now.
'But that marriage ain't happening this time.'
Sorry, kid, but I'm claiming Moyong Hui first.
I sat on a tree stump to rest and pulled a booklet from my bosom.
[Sword Phoenix Moyong Hui]
It was the booklet from Somwol.
I'd already read it a few times on the way, but I decided to review it once more.
'Obsessed with the sword as befits her title Sword Phoenix. Loves sparring and can't resist a skilled swordsman.'
There was plenty more, but the more I read, the more she reminded me of my second sister.
The nickname Sword Phoenix hadn't gone to Mok Jieun for nothing.
'Personality's a bit different, though….'
While my second sister was quiet, Moyong Hui was described as lively and energetic.
As I lost myself in reading for a good while,
"This way is the opposite direction from Mansung City."
A voice came from right beside me.
Chills shot up my spine.
'Holy shit, when did he?!'
I leaped up and retreated ten paces in one breath.
Then I looked at the figure right next to the stump I'd been sitting on.
It was the face I'd glimpsed briefly at the inn.
Cheon Seonwoo had snuck up on me somehow.
"Hmm, not Drunken Fist or Rejuvenation Art… to reach the Fusion Realm at your age—remarkable."
I swallowed hard and tossed out a question, trying to sound nonchalant.
"Who are you? What kind of stunt is this on a first meeting?"
"I should be the one asking. Why did you run when you saw me?"
Damn, sharp old man.
He'd noticed in that split second.
But I couldn't admit it here.
"What are you talking about? We've never met before, have we?"
No choice but to play dumb to the end.
Perhaps reading my resolve, Cheon Seonwoo shook his head slowly.
"Fine, whatever. More importantly, how old are you?"
My mind raced.
Lie or not? If yes, what age?
Noticing, Cheon Seonwoo lightly tapped the hilt at his waist.
"Don't try to fool me. I don't want to use force on a promising junior."
'Damn. Fighting would be a sure loss.'
I'd already entered the Returning Origin state upon reaching Fusion Realm.
The mere fact he'd detected it and followed meant the old man was already in the Transcendent Realm.
I decided to come clean.
I planned to make a name as a righteous sect junior anyway, so hiding my info was pointless.
Better than getting caught later and beaten for real.
"…I'll turn thirty this year."
"Ho, impressive. Your inner energy is so pure—you don't seem like some demonic outsider… What sect are you from?"
"No sect. I was raised by the Mok Family Clan in Shanxi."
"Mok Family Clan? Never heard of them…."
Cheon Seonwoo stroked his chin.
I threw a question while watching.
"And you? Who are you? Why'd you follow me?"
"I'm Cheon Seonwoo. I followed because you piqued my curiosity. And the more I see, the more curious I get. No famous sect or family… hmm."
I wanted to say the same about him, but held back.
No point pretending to know him and digging a deeper hole.
Then his gaze landed on the booklet in my hand.
"What's that?"
With a casual gesture, the booklet flew from my hand to his.
Air Grasp.
I could've blocked it if I tried….
'But only for a moment.'
He'd take it eventually.
And I couldn't just ignite Samadhi True Fire to burn it.
'That'd get me beaten for sure.'
Just because the Martial Emperor lived quietly didn't mean he had a saintly temper.
Slapping the Murim Alliance Leader and Four Black Alliance Chief to stop a war unrelated to him said it all.
"Sword Phoenix Moyong Hui…? What's this?"
Cheon Seonwoo tilted his head as he flipped through the pages.
Soon, annoyance flickered across his face.
"Why were you reading a booklet like this about a young lady?"
One wrong word here, and I was in real danger.
He was a righteous sect figure who prized justice and chivalry, after all.
To him, that booklet crossed a line.
After a moment's thought, I decided to own it boldly.
"I heard Sword Phoenix is beautiful, so I was on my way to meet her. Since she might become my wife, I looked into her personally out of curiosity."
I bought some intel to woo a girl.
Got a problem with that?