Chapter 95
Chapter 95
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 95
Chapter Title: Emissary (3)
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Meanwhile, on the slopes of Mount Mao, more than ten martial artists stood in formation, their expressions tense.
Most were Daoists from the Jiangsu Daoist sects, and their commander was a Buddhist nun from Putuo Temple on Mount Putuo.
They believed they could quickly dispatch the villain said to be on Mount Mao. They were confident that a remnant of the Demonic Cult could not withstand the divine sword arts of Putuo Temple.
But their opponent was far too formidable.
The nun from Putuo Temple, Jeong-yeon, stared at her crushed left hand, her heart filled with terror.
'This wasn't what I was told…!'
A dark shadow fell over Jeong-yeon's face.
The confidence she had displayed before entering the mountain, the pride of hailing from Putuo Temple, had long since vanished.
All that remained was the fear of the unknown.
Jeong-yeon's wavering gaze darted around. She opened her mouth to rally the Daoists, but only a groan of pain escaped.
Just then.
"Ah!"
A startled, flustered cry reached her ears. It was the voice of the young Daoist she had assigned as a scout for his sharp eyes.
*Thud, thud.*
And that was the end of it.
Jeong-yeon let out a scream-like shout.
"Center empty, assume defensive positions!"
At her command, the Daoists suppressed their rising goosebumps and immediately formed their ranks.
The Fifty-Four Buddha Shadow Gates, a formation said to possess the power to shatter evil and annihilate demons.
This was an abbreviated version, reinterpreted for twelve people. As it had been approved by the divine nun of Putuo Temple, its effectiveness was beyond doubt.
"...Gah!"
But their opponent, the man in the Black Dragon mask, acted as if the Buddha Shadow Gates were nothing.
"Hehe, how amusing!"
On the contrary, he seemed to find their struggle both disgusting and entertaining, killing the martial artists one by one with a relentless, madness-tinged smile.
He didn't kill them all at once, either.
"Gah, gurgle..."
A Daoist slashed by the Black Dragon's claws clutched his throat and crawled on the ground. Another, whose legs had been severed, glared resentfully at the Black Dragon.
The Black Dragon wore a contemptuous smile.
"You thought you could face me with something like this?"
"..."
"It seems you followed that wench over there, thinking she was reliable. I wonder, is her hand alright?"
At the Black Dragon's malicious muttering, Jeong-yeon's face turned deathly pale. The pain in her left arm, which she had been desperately enduring, seemed to empty her mind.
Seeing this, the Black Dragon twisted his lips into a sneer.
"Haha, hahaha!"
He let out a booming laugh. It was so loud that it even roused a Daoist who had been dazed from blood loss.
"Just because I've been in hiding for a long time, you dare to look down on me like this?"
"Silence! You remnant of the Demonic Cult!"
The Daoist with the slashed throat, though on the verge of death, did not stop speaking.
His long beard was already stained a dark red.
"Hah, the Demonic Cult..."
"You may be arrogant now because we are weak, but another hero will surely kill you!"
"Kill? Me?"
The Black Dragon's smile vanished, replaced by a peculiar expression.
"It took one hundred and eight of Shaolin's bald monks and thirty-two of Quanzhen's Daoists just to push me out to this remote place. Now that they're gone, who do you think can possibly kill me?"
*Step, step.*
The Black Dragon walked up to the Daoist and snatched his sword. He then drew out a sword aura over five inches long and struck his own left hand.
*Clang!*
It was an incredibly bizarre sound for a clash between human flesh and a sword. Moreover, a sword aura that condensed should have been able to slice through tin plate with ease.
*Riiip-!*
The Black Dragon tore his own sleeve, revealing his bare skin.
"......!"
"Good heavens!"
Aside from a slight reddening of the skin, there wasn't even a scratch.
Even the sword that had struck him was blunted and bent sideways. Such a mark wouldn't have been left even if it had clashed squarely with a hammer.
The Black Dragon revealed his red eyes and let out a smirk.
"Do I look like some mere vermin from the Demonic Cult to you?"
Two hours later.
A Daoist, driven mad, returned alone to the Martial Alliance and said this:
On Mount Mao, there is a Black Dragon, one who will bring chaos to the world...
"Did he truly say it was the Black Dragon!"
Nangong Cheon and the rest of the Martial Alliance were now on high alert.
***
Mount Hua Sect, inside Plum Blossom Hall, where Bai Duanxian resided.
There, Jeong Pa-ro sat formally, looking up at Bai Duanxian as he spoke.
"I believe it's not good to be too protective, Sect Leader."
"..."
At those words, Bai Duanxian remained silent.
Even if it seemed like he was only coddling Ouyang Jue, he had no intention of sending him out into such a chaotic world.
How could Jeong Pa-ro not know this?
Having watched Bai Duanxian's anguish from the side, he knew it all too well.
He knew the worry and sorrow in the man's heart, for he too had lost many martial brothers in the war against the old Demonic Cult.
But decisions always had to be made.
Jeong Pa-ro looked directly at Bai Duanxian.
"Sometimes, you have to let them go. In this Protector's view, Jue is not a child who will be content within the confines of Mount Hua. He is more than capable of navigating a wider world. Don't you think so as well, Sect Leader?"
As Jeong Pa-ro said, Bai Duanxian also knew that Ouyang Jue's martial arts and cunning were beyond ordinary.
No, they were at a level that could be called truly genius for surviving in the martial world.
But Bai Duanxian hesitated.
"...However."
"On that matter, both I and the True Man Baeksang, Jeong Jung-san, agree. And I believe the Heavenly Being was also considering it favorably."
At that, Bai Duanxian nearly frowned. He knew what Jin Mu-wol's intentions were in sending Ouyang Jue out as an emissary.
'What in the world is hidden in Plum Blossom Cave.'
And what is it about Ouyang Jue that makes him so suspicious that he keeps trying to send him here and there?
Bai Duanxian couldn't find any answers, not even a clue to his questions. He even began to think it would have been better if he had never known of Plum Blossom Cave's existence.
What was more frustrating was that even the two Great Protectors only knew of the existence of Plum Blossom Cave and Jin Mu-wol; they did not know what his existence signified.
Bai Duanxian's voice grew heavy.
"To be frank, Protector Jeong, aren't you becoming curious as well?"
"...How could I presume to fathom his intentions? He was an unpredictable man even when he was still an official member of Mount Hua."
"No secret can be kept forever."
Bai Duanxian said resolutely.
"Whether it's to hide that secret or because he's involved in it, I find it hard to accept my disciple being manipulated and sent here and there. And..."
An image of a young Cheol Geum-san flashed through Bai Duanxian's mind.
"I still haven't received an answer as to why he told me to take Jin-ak as my disciple over a decade ago."
"Sect Leader, are you perhaps feeling guilty about Cheol Geum-san?"
Jeong Pa-ro's eyes became frighteningly profound.
"Cheol Geum-san is a demon who practiced the Asura Demonic Scripture for over a decade. Whatever his former character, if he was the type to fall so far, there is no room for sympathy."
If Bai Duanxian was a Daoist who had trained in the orthodox teachings of the Daoist sects, Jeong Pa-ro was one who had forged his own path, staining his sword with countless drops of blood.
The gap between them was greater than others might think, and they had often clashed in private.
Would they fight this time as well?
Just as Jeong Pa-ro tilted his head, Bai Duanxian let out a deep sigh.
"I concede."
"...?"
"As the Heavenly Being and you, Protector, have said, I will send Jue out as an emissary."
At the unexpected words, Jeong Pa-ro straightened his posture. His resolve to spend hours persuading the stubborn Bai Duanxian seemed to dissipate like foam.
Because of that, a hesitant voice escaped Jeong Pa-ro's lips.
"I-Is that so?"
"Yes. I will do so."
Bai Duanxian closed his eyes for a moment.
-If a situation arises where I must go out as an emissary, please just let me go.
Ouyang Jue's telepathic message, sent when they were dealing with the Black Dragon Gang, seemed to linger in his ears. In short, a sense of determination had been conveyed to Bai Duanxian.
'He said he had something to look into.'
He didn't know what it was, but he was sure it wouldn't be something that would bring harm to his martial brothers or Mount Hua.
Then, Bai Duanxian suddenly realized his own change and gave a hollow smile.
It had only been a year.
Just a year ago, he had treated Ouyang Jue like a nuisance and thought Song Muk, who defended the boy, was strange.
But what about now?
Wasn't he, Bai Duanxian, also unknowingly relying on Ouyang Jue?
'I too must become a proud Sect Leader, a master that Jue can rely on.'
Watching Jeong Pa-ro leave Plum Blossom Hall, Bai Duanxian resolved to resume the training he had paused due to his various duties.
***
The next day, Ouyang Jue packed lightly and left the Mount Hua Sect.
He planned to use this opportunity to travel and meet the fateful encounters and eccentric masters hidden in every corner of the martial world.
Some might hear this and say he should have packed more, but that wasn't the case.
"First, I'll stop by the Golden Ring Merchant Guild, then have a meal at Wudang... There are more places to visit than I thought."
After all, he had made connections and become genuinely friendly with more than one or two places.
Moreover, the Wudang Sect was a prestigious school recognized everywhere in the martial world.
If he received a token from them signifying he was a guest of honor, he would be well-treated anywhere.
The Wudang Sect was especially close with the Ming Dynasty. He had heard that not a few of Wudang's secular disciples had entered military service.
'I've actually met one before...'
The martial artist he had remembered when he met Cheong Pung, the one who had been appointed a commander of a thousand at the tender age of twenty.
He was probably wiping down a Go board at a military supply base north of Gansu by now.
The best time to befriend someone is when they are in a difficult situation or need help.
Ouyang Jue glanced at a stream and practiced a benevolent-looking smile. But he soon realized it didn't suit him and pouted.
Killing time as he walked, he soon arrived at the west gate of Chang'an.
"Ah, I told you I have someone to meet urgently!"
"Do you not know who I am?!"
"If I don't get there quickly, this will spoil!"
The noise, reminiscent of a marketplace, made Ouyang Jue frown. The wrinkles he had just smoothed out creased his forehead once more.
'I should just go ahead.'
He didn't want to make a scene, but Ouyang Jue pushed past the numerous merchants and guards to move forward.
Seeing this, the West Gate Commander, Jang Il-guk, instinctively reached out to stop Ouyang Jue. But he quickly twisted his body and grinned.
"My goodness, what brings the esteemed Daoist here!"
"I have business with the Golden Ring Merchant Guild, and also at the clinic in the center of town."
"Is that so? Hahaha. Your bearing is especially fine today. Just looking at you feels like it's cleansing my eyes."
"Is that so?"
Ouyang Jue ignored Jang Il-guk's flattery and looked to his sides.
"That person is..."
"Shh!"
Half the eyes on him were filled with curiosity, while the other half belonged to people who shrank back in fear.
It was understandable. From the merchants' perspective, he was the one who had tormented them relentlessly for bullying a single fool.
Furthermore, his martial arts were said to be so profound that he could defeat most martial artists. So, as merchants, they had no choice but to bow their heads and obey.
One side of Ouyang Jue's mouth twisted into a sneer.
'Same as ever.'
This duplicity, acting weak like powerless commoners while trampling on those less fortunate than themselves, would likely persist for another hundred years.
Therefore, it was no longer worth his attention.
Ouyang Jue turned his head sharply and passed through the west gate.
'Fateful encounters and eccentric masters are important, but considering what I need to investigate, it's better to put them off for now.'
The fierce battle with the old Demonic Cult.
Who led the Orthodox Faction in that era, and why did the Mount Hua Sect end up on the front lines?
Ouyang Jue decided to focus his actions primarily on that.
'Just as the present is determined by past actions, something must have happened back then.'
Walking under Jang Il-guk's guidance, Ouyang Jue casually threw out a question.
"Could I borrow a map of the Central Plains for a month?"
At his words, Jang Il-guk hesitated for a moment. A map was information, and in this case, battlefield information that the government valued most highly.
But his hesitation was brief.
"Yeees, well, if it's for you, Daoist."
He was friendly with Wudang and close enough to be sworn brothers with the great merchant of this place, Bai Chuan.
Thinking there was no reason to get on Ouyang Jue's bad side, Jang Il-guk put on an artificial smile.