Chapter 169: Silent Rage (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 169: Silent Rage (1)
Yun Gyeong-jong's answer was more devastating than expected.
Namgung Jun's blade-like eyebrows twitched, and he slowly pressed his lips into a thin line.
The other two Hall Masters didn't say a word either. They merely feigned composure, struggling to suppress the slight tremor in their eyes.
There was a saying in the Jianghu: Once you step into the Jianghu, your life is like a falling autumn leaf.
Everyone knew the proverb, but that didn't make it any easier to treat the death of a friend or comrade as lightly as a leaf tumbling to the ground.
Senior Go.
Namgung Jun thought of Go Woo-shin, the Flying Swiftness Hall Master.
In truth, they hadn't been close. He had received a bit of advice and praise from the man during the Second Cloud Promotion Exam, but beyond that, they had only exchanged a few greetings when passing each other at the headquarters. Since Go Woo-shin spent far more time in the Jianghu than at the main sect, Namgung Jun usually only heard of his exploits through belated rumors.
Yet, Go Woo-shin's death didn't feel distant or insignificant.
He was the Flying Swiftness Hall Master, who roamed the Jianghu with the greatest Lightness Movement Art of them all. Knowing how many lives Go Woo-shin’s swift feet had saved, his absence already felt immense.
Hearing that a chivalrous hero, one who burned with righteousness, had been extinguished by the cold winds of the wilderness always left a dull ache in one's heart.
In the end, we never got to have that drink.
The memory of the Flying Swiftness Hall Master's smile flickered in his mind—the smile he’d worn when promising a bottle of fine liquor as thanks for slaying the Dragon Army Guard Leader.
He should have had that drink with him then.
A small, irreversible regret dug into his chest like a thorn.
Namgung Jun’s hand tightened on the hilt of his sword. The cold steel of the Eternal Righteous Sword slowly cooled his burning palm.
"Please, tell us the details of what happened," Namgung Jun said, speaking for the other two Hall Masters. He knew they must have had a much deeper bond with the Flying Swiftness Hall Master, and that simply asking the question would make their blood boil. It was better for him to be the one to ask.
"Azure Firmament Hall Master. Do you recall the bandit subjugation mission at Mount Seok?"
"Yes. It was the mission where I led the rookies, Yu Geun-su and Man Ye-won."
"We obtained information from the Great-Axe Green Forest bandit you escorted back then."
The Great-Axe Green Forest had been undergoing internal reforms, training its elites and solidifying its foundation. Having amassed sufficient power, they were once again preparing to expand their influence across the Jianghu. They began sending their masters to mountains they had long coveted, establishing strongholds and attempting to expand their power under the radar.
"Since then, the Heavenly Sword Hall hasn't been assigned any related missions due to scheduling, but other halls have been handling them. We have been actively suppressing the expansion of the Great-Axe Green Forest, keeping them contained within Shanxi Province."
"Then, was the Flying Swiftness Hall Master's last mission also...?"
"It was a mission to clear out Hongmun Fortress, which was pushing from the edge of Shanxi Province into Hebei Province. Not only had Hongmun Fortress grown in size, but their atrocities were becoming increasingly severe."
The Crushing Hall Master, Kang Gok, spoke up, his flabby double chin trembling. "The Hongmun Fortress Master’s moniker is the Assault-Specialist Axe... Didn't he achieve the Three Flowers Gather at the Crown half a year ago? Did Go Woo-shin really fall to that bastard?"
Yun Gyeong-jong let out a deep sigh before continuing. "When the Flying Swiftness Hall struck Hongmun Fortress, the Heaven-Treading Axe Emperor was there. It seems he traveled alone, without even his close subordinates."
"The Grand Stronghold Leader..." The Nether-Fathoming Hall Master, Hyeokri Yu, whispered, his voice trailing off as murderous intent filled his bloodshot eyes.
"If the Flying Swiftness Hall Master had been alone, he might have had a chance to escape," Yun Gyeong-jong explained. "However, he chose to save the subordinates he brought with him."
No further explanation was needed. Go Woo-shin would have thrown himself into danger without a second thought to ensure the Flying Swiftness Hall could escape alive.
"What were the casualties for the Flying Swiftness Hall?"
"Most who returned are injured, with a few severely wounded, but for the casualties to be this low… it was a blessing from heaven."
"Senior Go fulfilled his final duty," Namgung Jun murmured.
"And one more thing." Yun Gyeong-jong’s upper lip trembled as he glared, his voice turning to ice. "According to our intelligence, the Flying Swiftness Hall Master's corpse is hanging in front of Taewol Fortress."
Taewol Fortress. The heart of the Great-Axe Green Forest and the stronghold where the Heaven-Treading Axe Emperor himself served as the Stronghold Leader.
The meaning of hanging a corpse there for all to see was obvious.
A provocation against our association.
As long as one walked the Jianghu with a blade, death was a constant companion. However, desecrating a corpse was a line that went far beyond the bounds of martial etiquette.
Just as Namgung Jun was about to volunteer to set out—
Rumble!
A violent wave of qi erupted from Kang Gok, who had been biting his lip in silence. The furniture in the room rattled, and even the walls and ceiling of the grand conference room trembled precariously. Kang Gok, already a man of stout build, seemed to loom even larger.
"And? Surely the Ink Lord has no intention of taking this lying down," he growled.
As Kang Gok’s thunderous voice echoed, Hyeokri Yu's bloodshot eyes also locked onto Yun Gyeong-jong. Namgung Jun rested his hand on his sword hilt, his aura turning razor-sharp and chilling.
Yun Gyeong-jong looked at the three Hall Masters in turn. Though hidden behind deep wrinkles, the old man's eyes were boiling with rage.
"Woo-shin's revenge... of course, we must take it."
Yun Gyeong-jong's expression, usually a mask of composure, was now that of a warrior facing a mortal enemy.
"The Azure Firmament Hall, the Crushing Hall, and the Nether-Fathoming Hall shall head to Shanxi Province. Your primary objective is to retrieve the Flying Swiftness Hall Master's corpse."
Retrieving the corpse was the goal. To do that, they would have to face Taewol Fortress and the countless bandits of the Great-Axe Green Forest. This was, for all intents and purposes, a declaration of war between the Azure Heaven Association and the Great-Axe Green Forest.
The three Hall Masters knew this. They understood the weight of the mission. Even so, they exchanged glances, their fighting spirit flaring.
"We'll have to split the Heaven-Treading Axe Emperor in half to bring Go Woo-shin back," Kang Gok declared.
"We kill him with a joint attack," Hyeokri Yu added.
They spoke of slaying a peerless expert as if it were a matter of course. In the Jianghu, it was generally accepted that three supreme experts could match one peerless expert. Of course, this was not an absolute formula.
If the three supreme experts had only recently achieved the Three Flowers Gather at the Crown and couldn't yet master the functions of the Butterfly Metamorphosis of Mystic Time and Heart Spirit Qi Transformation gained through the Unity of Essence, Qi, and Spirit, their combined assault would likely crumble.
Conversely, if their opponent was a peerless expert on the level of the Five Great Masters—one who had surpassed the Five Qis Converging at the Origin and reached the Peak and Attained the Ultimate—three would be far from enough. It might require five, or even seven, supreme experts.
On the other hand, there were precedents of two supreme experts at the peak of the Three Flowers Gather at the Crown slaying a peerless expert who had only just achieved the Five Qis Converging at the Origin and could not yet weave Manifested Astral Qi.
Since martial prowess and circumstances vary, there is no definitive answer. But if we generalize based on average strength, three supreme experts against one peerless expert is the most common standard.
Namgung Jun observed Kang Gok and Hyeokri Yu. He knew his two seniors had achieved the Three Flowers Gather at the Crown long ago and ranked in the upper-middle tier among the eleven Hall Masters. The Heaven-Treading Axe Emperor, on the other hand, had not yet reached the Peak and Attained the Ultimate, meaning he was not a peerless expert on par with the Five Great Masters.
The odds of victory weren't high, but the possibility of slaying the Heaven-Treading Axe Emperor certainly existed.
"We shall return to the headquarters with Senior Go," Namgung Jun vowed.
It was a joint mission of the three halls.
* * *
For once, the Azure Firmament Hall—usually filled with the clash of steel and the explosive sounds of training—was full of laughter.
"Did they finally do it?"
"Of course! If they're from the Azure Firmament Hall, passing is a given."
"Is everyone finally a Third Cloud?!"
The three Second Clouds of the Azure Firmament Hall who had entered the Third Cloud Training Camp had returned, and on their sleeves were embroidered three clouds.
"Hehehe. Well, my promotion was practically in the bag," Man Ye-won said with a smirk, her hands on her hips. Having taken top honors in the training camp, her confidence seemed to reach the heavens.
Although Dan So-hye and Yu Geun-su hadn't placed first or second, they had both finished in the top ten, graduating with top-tier marks. The Third Clouds looked on proudly at their juniors who had promoted with such excellent results.
Samyeop tapped his toes on the floor and laughed. "Now I don't have to run around so hard looking after the Second Clouds, do I? I can finally catch my breath."
As Samyeop was celebrating, a voice transmission entered his ear.
—Senior Samyeop. Please come to my office.
Startled by the sudden summons, Samyeop quietly slipped away from the group. After checking his surroundings, he entered the office with a puzzled expression. Namgung Jun occasionally held private meetings to get to know his hall members better, but he had never summoned someone so secretly.
Gazing at the profile of Namgung Jun silently brewing tea, Samyeop had a vague premonition. Whatever the Hall Master was about to say would be heavy.
"Hall Master. Has something happened?"
"Please, look at this."
As Samyeop examined the report Namgung Jun handed him, his eyes slowly widened. He blinked several times, and a long silence passed before he could barely manage to speak.
"The Flying Swiftness Hall Master... is it true?"
Namgung Jun couldn't bring himself to look at Samyeop's face. He simply stared at his teacup, which he had no intention of drinking.
"The Azure Firmament Hall will be heading to Shanxi Province soon. The other hall members will find out shortly, but I called you first because I thought you would need some time to compose yourself, Senior Samyeop."
Samyeop remained silent for a long time. He read the report over and over, his hands eventually dropping limply to his sides as his eyes trembled.
"Senior Samyeop. Are you alright?"
"Ah... yes. Yes, of course."
Namgung Jun pretended not to notice Samyeop's trembling legs. "I heard you joined the Azure Heaven Association thanks to Senior Go."
"Yes. The Flying Swiftness Hall Master saved my life when I was a child."
Samyeop recalled his first meeting with Go Woo-shin. As a boy, he had worked as an errand boy at a small inn in his village. He hadn't even been there seven days, so he was clumsy with everything. His only saving graces were his swift feet and quick reflexes.
But one day, relying too much on his speed, he ran too fast and spilled food on a martial artist. The memory of being slammed into a wall by the furious man, who swung his hand as if shooing away a fly, was still vivid.
"I took a hard blow to the cheek, but strangely, it didn't hurt much. Thinking back, I suppose my body was so shocked by a level of pain it had never experienced that it couldn't even react. My face swelled up instantly, as if it were about to burst."
Even then, the martial artist's anger hadn't subsided. The person who saved him just before he was beaten to death was Go Woo-shin.
With a light step, an invisible wind stirred, and the martial artist suddenly convulsed and fainted. On Go Woo-shin's sleeve, three clouds billowed. It was magnificent. Samyeop wanted to become just like him.
Go Woo-shin vanished into thin air, but he occasionally reappeared after that. On their third meeting, he brought Samyeop to the Azure Heaven Association.
"If not for the Flying Swiftness Hall Master, I would still be an inn errand boy, or I would have died in some incident at the inn."
Namgung Jun listened to Samyeop's story in silence.
By the time he finished, Samyeop's legs had stopped trembling, but his trouser legs were damp with tears.
* * *
Corpses were scattered in every direction.
In their midst, Jang Mu-yeon lay on a diagonally cut boulder, using it as a makeshift bed. Cradling the back of his head with one arm, he read a letter and let out a soft sigh.
"..."
Fwoosh!
He burned the letter with Samadhi True Fire and rose to his feet.
As he gathered his discarded sword and put on his bamboo hat, the Resounding Voice Hall Master, who was clearing his throat nearby, tilted his head in confusion.
"Sword Lord?"
"Yun-seong. The Resounding Voice Hall can handle the rest, right?"
"Huh? Well, yes, but..."
"I must leave at once."
The Resounding Voice Hall Master, Ho Yun-seong, asked hastily, "Where are you going all of a sudden?"
"Shanxi Province."