Chapter 47
Chapter 47
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: Zhongnan Sect (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“...It would be impolite to keep a guest of Zhongnan standing. Follow me.”
Presently, the Daoist turned and started to ascend.
Ouyang Jue followed behind him. He was overcome by the feeling that he was walking with a wooden statue.
The Zhongnan Sect's vigilance was higher than he had imagined.
This was not good.
In a situation this tense, if he proposed joining forces, they would surely be suspicious.
The Daoist might not seem like a martial artist, but he was an intellectual who had studied the classics since childhood.
‘Besides, a place like the Zhongnan Sect would undoubtedly have connections in the nearby villages and towns.’
It would be impossible to prove he was doing something else at that time.
Moreover, he had departed from the Mount Hua Sect without any established contacts.
To hope for the Golden Ring Merchant Guild's help now was absurd.
The Beggars' Sect was already under suspicion, so they were out of the question.
Ouyang Jue's mind raced furiously.
Within it, a mix of experience and cunning schemes accumulated since his past life swirled.
…He stopped.
Lost in thought, he found himself stepping onto the top of the stairs.
But he still lacked the information to devise a strategy.
Ouyang Jue glanced around.
“As expected of the Zhongnan Sect, the Daoist school with the longest history. Its immense past is visible at a glance.”
He spoke politely, but to Ouyang Jue, the Zhongnan Sect's grounds actually resembled a village.
One could glimpse Zhongnan's stubbornness in their refusal to station a powerful Daoist in the cave where Lü Dongbin had once trained.
‘Are they trying not to disturb the site?’
Ouyang Jue's brow furrowed.
From Lü Dongbin to Wang Chongyang's Quanzhen School, the history of Daoism nurtured by Mount Zhongnan signified both its beginning and its golden age.
Although Wudang, supported by the Great Ming, was now prominent.
Their convenient advocacy for the dual cultivation of nature and life must not have sat well with Zhongnan.
Just then, the Daoist spoke.
“For what purpose have you come all this way?”
“I have come to offer my condolences, Master Simwon.”
At his words, the Daoist, Master Simwon, let out a small sound of surprise.
“You are quite perceptive for a young Daoist friend, to recognize this humble self of mine.”
‘Hardly.’
…is what he wanted to say, but Ouyang Jue crushed the thought and pushed it down.
If an elder of the Zhongnan Sect was humble, then who in the world could hold their head high?
Contrary to his thoughts, Ouyang Jue's face was filled with a gentle smile.
“You are too modest, Master. Please, speak comfortably.”
At that, Master Simwon cut straight to the point.
“May I ask you one thing, my friend?”
“...?”
Master Simwon's eyes deepened for a moment.
“I am aware that the Mount Hua Sect did not send a formal message. Have you come on personal business? Or…”
...have you come to deliver a message from Mount Hua, away from prying eyes?
Ouyang Jue met his gaze calmly and thought.
‘He's uncannily guessed what I was going to say.’
At this rate, denying it would only make him seem strange.
Ouyang Jue shook his head lightly.
“There has been a misunderstanding.”
“A misunderstanding?”
“I was told the Sect Leader had already sent a message, so I departed immediately.”
He could not, under any circumstances, show that the Mount Hua Sect was in a hurry.
Instead, making the other party anxious was the first principle of negotiation.
Master Simwon's brow furrowed deeply.
He must be recalling the recent incident.
Ouyang Jue spoke nonchalantly.
“It seems… the carrier pigeons between Mount Zhongnan and Mount Hua have been intercepted.”
Anxiety has the power to turn uncertainty into conviction.
Especially if the one who subdued Yeong Heo-ja was a master of sword ki.
It usually takes a talented individual until their mid-thirties or forties to master sword ki, so they would naturally know a thing or two about intercepting carrier pigeons.
Considering that, it wasn't an entirely baseless claim.
An imminent threat has a way of narrowing even a sage's perspective.
Seeing the lines deepen on Master Simwon's jaw, Ouyang Jue spoke.
“Master, you have already heard, have you not? That a spy has infiltrated our sect.”
“I have.”
If not for yesterday's events, he might have added his regrets, but now it was difficult to dismiss it as someone else's problem.
Seeing Master Simwon waver, Ouyang Jue thought.
‘If they think the culprit who not only nearly harmed a promising junior but also desecrated the sacred cave is nearby…’
...what elder could possibly remain calm?
Even the great Zhuge Liang would fan himself and cry out to the heavens in the face of such a sudden incident.
Just as Ouyang Jue, nursing a smirk internally, was about to twist the knife.
“You said your name was Ouyang, my Daoist friend.”
He lifted his gaze at the unexpected voice.
A well-groomed beard fluttered from within a shadow backlit by the moon.
An immeasurably profound internal energy settled upon Master Simwon's shoulders.
Ouyang Jue also felt that energy, though indirectly.
‘The Limitless Divine Arts?’
If Mount Hua had the Purple Mist True Qi that encompassed all energies, Zhongnan had an alchemy aimed at the limitless.
Its qi accumulation speed was, without a doubt, abysmal.
However, the resulting purity of the internal energy more than compensated for that weakness.
‘To have accumulated that much internal energy with the Limitless Divine Arts… could it be the Sect Leader of Zhongnan?’
Recognizing the other's extraordinary presence, Ouyang Jue bowed his head. The old Daoist smiled faintly.
“What have you done wrong to bow your head?”
“I am merely ashamed for not having greeted the greatest elder of a sect first.”
“For someone of your rumored reputation, your vocabulary is quite sophisticated.”
“Thank you for your kind assessment.”
“Heh heh.”
After a dry chuckle, the old Daoist's eyes glinted with interest as he looked Ouyang Jue over.
“Hm?”
“...?”
“Oh ho, it seems that fellow Mu-wol has taken quite an interest in you.”
At those words, Ouyang Jue tilted his head in confusion.
“Mu-wol?”
At Ouyang Jue's question, it was the old Daoist's turn to be slightly surprised.
“You haven't heard from your master?”
Only then did Ouyang Jue let out a small ‘Ah.’
The ‘eccentric’ he had met with Bai Duanxian suddenly came to mind.
If that eccentric was the person the old Daoist spoke of, it meant the Mount Hua Sect possessed a formidable master, and things might just work out well.
Even so, one thing bothered Ouyang Jue.
‘To think he knows a master from the Wudang Sect and even the Sect Leader of the Zhongnan Sect.’
Why did such a powerful figure not appear in his past life?
It was a mystery that would one day need solving, which only intensified his curiosity.
But he couldn't carelessly bring it up here.
That wasn't why he had come.
The priority was always to form a united front to deal with the Black Dragon Gang, and then to pressure the Beggars' Sect.
As Ouyang Jue nodded, the old Daoist muttered to himself.
“Still the same… I see.”
“...”
Ouyang Jue committed those words to memory.
They might serve as a useful card to buy time if he ever met the eccentric again.
As Ouyang Jue stared at him, the old Daoist, who had been lost in thought, finally introduced himself.
“My apologies for the late introduction, my friend. I am Master Manseon, the Sect Leader of the Zhongnan Sect.”
With a swift, precise motion, Ouyang Jue cupped his fist in an extremely respectful salute.
“It is an honor to meet you, Master.”
“That's enough.”
Seeing Ouyang Jue's overly formal display of courtesy, Master Manseon waved his hand dismissively.
Yet even that simple gesture was so devoid of presence it felt like the movement of a plant.
Ouyang Jue's eyes gleamed like obsidian.
For a brief moment, he felt he had glimpsed a fragment of the man's power.
Then, Master Manseon's lips parted.
“You've come at a rather poor time to offer condolences.”
“S-Sect Leader!”
“Enough. What do we lack, and what have we to hide, that we should deceive this young Daoist?”
After admonishing Master Simwon with gentle words, Master Manseon looked at Ouyang Jue.
A sturdy physique, unlike the Daoists of today who are preoccupied with accumulating qi.
Though he held his head high even before the leader of a sect, he did not lack courtesy.
And his disposition seemed similar to that of an old friend.
Thinking that far, Master Manseon shook his head gravely.
‘I've unintentionally imposed a preconceived notion upon our young friend…’
He didn't know where he was living now, but the Mount Hua Daoist named Mu-wol possessed truly absolute martial prowess.
Had he not humbled himself, he would still be spoken of as a legend among the Daoist schools.
Wudang's Master Hyeon-geom may have looked down on him, but he knew the man wouldn't dare do so if they actually met.
To Master Manseon, Mu-wol was a close friend and a respected martial artist.
Having organized his thoughts, Master Manseon spoke to Ouyang Jue.
“Yesterday, a martial artist carrying a Black Dragon Gang token infiltrated our Zhongnan Sect.”
At that, Ouyang Jue tilted his head.
“Oh? Is that so?”
“Fortunately, no lives were lost, but one is in critical condition. They say he was a master who uses sword ki.”
Ouyang Jue feigned surprise, widening his eyes. But his gaze remained calm and steady.
‘A master, he says.’
His tone suggested he wasn't yet convinced it was the real Black Dragon Gang.
It could be a ploy to sow discord, so he intended to investigate thoroughly before deciding.
‘I can't wait that long.’
Ouyang Jue spoke.
“By the way, Sect Leader, do you not know what I said back at the Mount Hua Sect?”
“...?”
At the out-of-place question, both Master Manseon and the other Daoists furrowed their brows.
But Ouyang Jue hadn't been idle during his time at the Mount Hua Sect.
*Shhhk.*
From the folds of his robe, Ouyang Jue produced a flood of letters he had exchanged with the Beggars' Sect and the merchant guild.
Their contents varied, but the bottom of each letter was always marked with a date.
And there was a signature from So Heung, a calligrapher from Sangju, attesting to the dates.
“Some of these letters are crumpled?”
At that, Ouyang Jue realized it was the letter he had crumpled that morning.
“I got so angry, you see.”
Ouyang Jue scratched the back of his head sheepishly as Master Manseon's sharp gaze swept over him.
But that action alone was genuine, so it didn't feel out of place.
Master Manseon called over a few lay disciples and had them look at the letters.
“Is the calligraphy forged?”
“No, sir. It is the handwriting of So Heung, which I have seen since I was a child.”
“Is that so…”
Only then did Master Manseon call Master Simwon over to examine the letters closely.
At the very least, the dates were not falsified.
Moreover, to a Daoist, a calligrapher was an inextricably familiar figure.
Because of this, even a Daoist who used a brush as his weapon craned his neck for a look.
As a result, the contents of the letters seeped clearly into the minds of the Zhongnan Sect's core members.
“Hmm.”
Master Manseon let out a deep groan.
“Your intent to destroy the Black Dragon Gang?”
“It was to bolster my friend's morale.”
“Why did you remain silent, even knowing the Beggars' Sect had been silenced?”
“Because believing everything will go according to my plans is nothing but arrogance.”
Gazing at Ouyang Jue with profound eyes, Master Manseon asked the most important question.
“What was your reason for having every date recorded on these letters and certified by a calligrapher?”
A ghastly blue flame flared in Ouyang Jue's eyes.
“Need you ask? It was to ensure the Black Dragon Gang, who dared to touch Mount Hua's Senior-most Brother, would be thoroughly punished.”
Therefore, there could not be a single flaw.
Did that sincerity perhaps reach Master Manseon?
He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them.
The first thing he saw was, of course, the indignation of Master Simwon, who had witnessed Yeong Heo-ja's grave injuries firsthand.
Master Manseon's eyebrow twitched.
“My friend, what do you wish for us to help you with now?”
Ouyang Jue answered simply.
“We must subdue the Beggars' Sect first.”
To that, Master Manseon replied as if he had been thinking the very same thing.
“Understood.”
Before that single word had even finished echoing, the Zhongnan Sect had completed its preparations.
‘Has it been eight hours since I left Mount Hua?’
Ouyang Jue gazed toward the distant Xi'an with a resolute expression.
‘I'll end this as quickly as possible.’
Ouyang Jue had only one goal.
To finish everything and seize control before the enemy within the Mount Hua Sect could notice.