Chapter 82
Chapter 82
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: Martial Alliance (4)
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“When did you empty your cup?”
Nangong Cheon calmed his agitated heart and asked out of pure curiosity.
From the formless energy that had subtly settled to Ouyang Jue's slightest movements, he had thought everything was within his perception.
But what was this empty cup now?
It was something he hadn't anticipated, just like before.
This time, however, surprise and admiration outweighed his anger.
As Nangong Cheon watched with curious eyes, Ouyang Jue was lost in other thoughts.
*...Still, he won't be convinced. A man like that.*
Though he had only known the man for a short time, Ouyang Jue could somewhat gauge what kind of person Nangong Cheon was.
Someone who sees the bigger picture, rather than focusing on minor details like pure martial skill.
From that perspective, Mount Hua was a burdensome sect to admit into the alliance.
It was like a muddy footprint on the newly completed structure of the Martial Alliance; there was no reason to welcome it.
They would treat them well, but they couldn't give them a voice.
That must have been the admission proposal Nangong Cheon had offered.
So Ouyang Jue made a choice.
To shatter the board.
To shave one side of the die, turning six faces into seven.
If that didn't work, his plan was to bluff and emphasize strengths that didn't exist.
In the process, Ouyang Jue had earned Jegal Hyeon's favor and fought against Jeok Sa-goeng, who had coincidentally picked a fight.
Ouyang Jue, who was only worth a six, had obtained a seven and come this far.
A junior from the Mount Hua Sect, whose admission offered no benefit to the Martial Alliance, was now face-to-face with the Vice-Leader himself.
This was not an opportunity that came easily. Perhaps in the future, no matter what great deeds he accomplished, it was highly likely he wouldn't be granted another meeting.
*If Mount Hua becomes too powerful, its entry alone would push out at least ten other sects from the Martial Alliance.*
No matter how righteous the Martial Alliance claimed to be, it was ultimately a battleground for power. A very large ally would displace existing ones upon entry.
Moreover, the sects that had never looked favorably upon the Mount Hua Sect would be ostracized.
Nangong Cheon must be concerned about this.
At this point, when it was difficult to be called the number one Daoist sect north of the river, they had no choice but to enter this ambiguous state of judgment.
Ouyang Jue made his judgment and clenched his fists.
He recalled everything he had done to get to this point and met Nangong Cheon's gaze.
“You said that time erases memories.”
Ouyang Jue continued calmly.
“Then, as much as has been erased, I will fill it. The future Mount Hua Sect will surely have the strength to do so.”
“...”
At those words, Nangong Cheon silently drained his cup. It was a statement that gave him much to think about.
It was also the most arrogant thing Ouyang Jue had said so far. At the same time, it was a slight to the Undying Incense, Jeong Jung-san.
It was as if a great calamity, incomparable to the old Demonic Cult, awaited in the future.
If not that, then it was impossible to surpass the achievements of the Undying Incense, which began in the past, since the time of Jin Mu-wol.
Thus, it was a statement ripe for ridicule. Perfect for unleashing a torrent of abuse.
But Nangong Cheon's mind grew cold.
The book he had read before Ouyang Jue arrived and Jegal Hyeon's praise for his eye for the bigger picture kept bothering him.
Wasn't it a fact that he had used clever tricks, being close to the Beggars' Sect, to avoid the notice of the martial world?
*Gurgle.*
Nangong Cheon asked as he poured wine into his cup.
“Are you serious?”
Perhaps because evening had fallen, the moon outside the window was reflected in the cup.
*Whoosh—*
The wind blew.
Even the days of winter, once relentlessly cold, were gradually warming.
The dust from a stone mountain over a hundred li away was now rolling powerlessly on the ground.
Just like this, even things that seem unchanging change with the passage of time. To Nangong Cheon, Ouyang Jue felt like that change.
The martial arts achieved in the past.
The status, power, and honor achieved with help from a more distant past.
If a new wind had blown, one that could not be understood or communicated with through such things, if it was blowing now... wasn't that Ouyang Jue?
Having thought that far, Nangong Cheon gave a small shake of his head.
*Not yet.*
No matter how much martial prowess beyond his years Ouyang Jue possessed, no matter his foresight, Nangong Cheon thought he was still lacking to utter such words.
Perhaps he possessed such arrogance because he had gained so much at a young age.
Nangong Cheon changed his expression and pretended to be furious.
“Insolent! To declare you will surpass your sect's seniors, not to a fellow disciple, but to an outsider without hesitation. Do you think that is something a disciple should do?”
It was a question that would make any junior hesitate, yet Ouyang Jue answered without a moment's pause.
“Yes.”
After throwing out that short answer, Ouyang Jue clenched his fists.
“For the student to surpass the master is the very goal a sect strives for. No master would ever be jealous or resentful of their disciple's growth.”
“...”
As Nangong Cheon seemed to listen in silence, Ouyang Jue recalled many people.
“...You're too kind for your own good.”
His sworn brother who died during his life as a wanderer.
“Aren't you my friend? You should take this.”
The Omniscient One, who had called himself a lifelong friend even at the moment of their parting.
“This is the sword of Mount Hua that you abandoned, Senior Brother.”
“You are the one with the strongest scent of plum blossoms, Junior Brother.”
Even Jo Hun and Liu Zhangming, now adults.
Many faces, from his past life and his current one, flashed before his eyes.
They were the driving force that had brought him this far, the reason he had resolved to live as a Daoist of Mount Hua.
Even if he were to meet the connections from his past life someday, he hoped to meet them not as the Bloodhound Ouyang Jue, but as a righteous warrior.
It was the path he had run hoping for that, and it was a stroke of fortune. Given a new chance, Ouyang Jue had made a resolution.
He would never let this opportunity slip away easily; he was determined to catch even the grains of sand slipping through his fingers.
Ouyang Jue raised his head straight.
“To fill the gap of twenty years, the Mount Hua Sect won't even need five.”
At those words, Nangong Cheon voiced the conclusion he had reached after deep consideration.
“...Absurd. Who would believe such talk of the future? These are not the words of someone who studied at the Daoist temple of Mount Hua, not some charlatan.”
*So that's his answer.*
Ouyang Jue was about to open his mouth to persuade Nangong Cheon again, but he unconsciously closed it.
A faint smile lingered on Nangong Cheon's lips.
“But if you say so, it must mean the Mount Hua Sect has its own will and a plan, does it not?”
“...!”
“Very well. But do not think things will always go favorably. We are merely acting together for a short while.”
With those final words, Nangong Cheon sent Ouyang Jue out. Then, he drained his wine in one gulp.
In a way, it was a hopeless deal.
Since the Mount Hua Sect hadn't been active in the martial world for twenty years, they were bound to face harsh trials in the Martial Alliance.
No matter how strong the Mount Hua Sect's legitimacy or how profound their martial arts, forged through a long history, the world of swords and blades would relentlessly press its daggers against them.
Nangong Cheon picked up the wine bottle again.
*Even now, someone might be trying to attack the Mount Hua Sect somewhere.*
A deal with no guarantees.
He might even be forcibly removed from his position as Vice-Leader.
But.
Nangong Cheon had seen something in Ouyang Jue. Though it was indistinct, nothing more than a murky shape for now, he saw potential.
“The Mount Hua Sect...”
Nangong Cheon's hand reached for the book about the Mount Hua Sect.
* * *
Afterward, the Martial Alliance's attitude toward Ouyang Jue changed completely.
Not only was he treated with considerable respect by the martial artists of the Alliance and served lavish meals, but some even volunteered themselves as inferiors and requested sparring matches.
Ouyang Jue let out a dry laugh at the drastic change from yesterday.
“It wasn't like this yesterday. I feel like I've become a celebrity overnight.”
At his words, Yeong Heo-ja smiled brightly.
“What of it? You were deserving of it from the start, weren't you?”
“...?”
“The world calls Mount Hua the number one Daoist sect in Shaanxi. And you are its foremost junior.”
At Yeong Heo-ja's words, Ouyang Jue stared at him as if he had eaten something strange. He didn't think it was something a Daoist from the Zhongnan Sect, also in Shaanxi, would say.
Soon, Yeong Heo-ja scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
“Well, what the world says is what the world says. No matter how much I deny it, can you change people's minds overnight?”
“The Zhongnan Sect is also a fine and prestigious sect.”
“I know that even if you don't say it. Didn't the founder of our Daoist path, Master Sunyang, study right here on our Mount Zhongnan?”
Yeong Heo-ja laughed heartily. Then he pointed to the plaque officially bestowed by the Martial Alliance.
“Seeing as it's a gold plaque, it must mean the Martial Alliance holds you in high regard. So you, too, should accept this honor as your due. You are a disciple of the great Mount Hua Sect, after all.”
“Indeed.”
Ouyang Jue replied, a vague smile on his face.
To anyone living in this life, it would look as though the Mount Hua Sect was on a triumphant rise, but not to Ouyang Jue.
The traces of his past life remained with him.
To be precise, it was a memory of the past, deeply embedded in his mind.
[...As we advance north, we ask for the full cooperation and assistance of our fellow Daoists from Mount Hua.]
How had he felt when the Martial Alliance sent such a letter?
Ouyang Jue, at that age, could not accept it. So he picked a fight with the martial artist who came from the Martial Alliance.
After being beaten to a pulp, he had heard one thing.
“They said there was a troublemaker in Mount Hua. So it was you.”
“Mount Hua would never...!”
Before Ouyang Jue could finish, the martial artist spoke.
“Don't say things you can't take responsibility for when you're so weak. Doesn't the Mount Hua Sect teach you that?”
The martial artist left after uttering those spiteful words.
Ouyang Jue had watched him go, sobbing quietly, and was deeply shocked.
His fellow disciples couldn't say a word.
Even his seniors grew gradually gaunt. Bai Duanxian would shake his head and avoid the martial artist.
In his younger days, it had been a great shock. So he secretly left the mountain under the pretext of returning stronger.
It was a petty mindset. He had done it while half-knowing that it wouldn't change anything.
That's why it led to regret, and he experienced the coldness of the martial world alone.
When he returned to Mount Hua, they were the absolute weak, and they were his enemies. So he had no choice but to kill them.
“...”
But now, things were different.
The Mount Hua Sect was gradually growing stronger, becoming one. It was a change on a different level from his past life.
He had received a gold plaque from the Martial Alliance, a symbol of strength. In terms of sect and backing, he had now established a foothold in the martial world.
Ouyang Jue wept inwardly.
*It wasn't all for nothing.*
Realizing that things had indeed changed, Ouyang Jue managed a difficult smile.
Then he realized he still hadn't given Yeong Heo-ja a proper answer.
“Because I, too, am a Daoist of the great Mount Hua Sect.”
Yeop Cheong and Yang Ji-hyeon, who had joined them late, also smiled warmly at the sight.
* * *
A few days later.
Ouyang Jue finished his preparations to return to the Mount Hua Sect and went out to the market. He had long since achieved his goal for this trip.
Entry into the Martial Alliance.
Recognition from the strong.
It was also a confirmation that the Martial Alliance would help if the Mount Hua Sect ever faced danger or did something worthy of criticism.
*In the martial world, the Martial Alliance and the Heretic's League are solid backers.*
Ouyang Jue realized his sphere of action had widened and smiled faintly. If he brought this news back to the Mount Hua Sect, he might even be granted a mission banner.
Just then, a familiar voice greeted Ouyang Jue.
“Hey, kid.”
“Iron Wind Hound?”
At his words, the Iron Wind Hound grinned.
“Is that any way to address an elder so casually?”
“Why is the Shaanxi Branch Leader here?”
“Ah, I came because I have something to tell you, of course.”
The Iron Wind Hound glanced around for a moment, then in a hushed voice, he warned of a danger to the Mount Hua Sect.
“The Zhenzhou Yan Clan, you know of them?”
“The Zhenzhou Yan Clan.”
Ouyang Jue replied leisurely.
“Would it be more convenient if I said I did, or if I said I didn't?”