Chapter 211
Chapter 211
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 211
Chapter Title: Wuchang
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The evening of the day Jeong Taeryeong had shot Han Gyun with the Stormflower Needle Shower.
Hong Geolgae grumbled as he returned from going out into the streets with Wang Jin-cheong.
"Rumors spread faster than a galloping horse, right? Until yesterday, I thought that was just talk."
Nangong Myeong, who had been slumped in his seat, smirked.
"See? I told you."
Jeong Taeryeong, who had unintentionally been confined to the inn, asked Hong Geolgae.
"Is it that bad?"
"Don't even ask. I didn't expect it to be this much. It's worse than during the day."
Hong Geolgae detailed everything he had seen and heard outside to the group.
To sum it up, it all boiled down to one thing: everyone in Wuchang was buzzing only about the "mysterious hidden weapon."
If the Stormflower Needle Shower had been something anyone could easily understand and accept, there might have been less talk.
But the people who hadn't come to the martial stage couldn't believe such a thing existed. A tiny tube, flicked a couple times with the fingers, subduing a first-rate martial artist? Ridiculous.
As a result, an intense debate raged between those who had seen the Stormflower Needle Shower with their own eyes and those who hadn't, with neither side yielding an inch. Consequently, the rumors spread even faster.
That was the context for Jeong Taeryeong being holed up in the inn.
Even without Jeong Taeryeong around, conversations everywhere were filled with the Stormflower Needle Shower.
If Jeong Taeryeong showed his face, he was bound to be swarmed by crowds and unable to move.
Of course, staying hidden didn't neatly solve the problem.
Not only the tournament officials but also martial artists and Wuchang merchants who smelled money had flocked to the inn. Their numbers were too vast to count.
Simply locking the doors wouldn't resolve it.
In the end, Dang Mujin, Nangong Myeong, and Hyeon-gong were taking turns going outside to chase away the crowds gathering at the inn. Right now, Hyeon-gong was standing guard by the door.
Nangong Myeong grumbled at Dang Mujin.
"You, Dang Mujin. Couldn't you have made the Stormflower Needle Shower a bit more moderately?"
"Anyone hearing that would think I made the Stormflower Needle Shower."
"But you did make it."
Dang Mujin replied in an aggrieved tone.
"The design was by Dan Seol-yeong. I just followed her instructions. I couldn't increase or decrease the power on my own."
Of course, unlike the one he made with Dan Seol-yeong, this version used precious materials without sparing them, doubling the power. But Dang Mujin didn't bother mentioning that.
Dissatisfaction filled Nangong Myeong's voice. His arrow turned toward Dang Jesun in Sichuan Province.
"Lord Dang should give some work to Dan Seol-yeong too. She's his daughter-in-law, so he babies her too much, and she ends up making weird stuff in her spare time."
Nangong Myeong was partially right. Unlike ordinary women raising children and handling chores, Dan Seol-yeong's daily life was somewhat leisurely.
The clinic's medical duties were assisted by Chu Sam, skilled in medicine, and Mok Wan-ah, expert in herbs and poisons.
Even the menial tasks weren't left to Dan Seol-yeong. Dang Jesun had hired people for drawing water, preparing meals, and all such odd jobs.
Thanks to his extreme doting on his daughter-in-law, all Dan Seol-yeong did was care for her daughter and pursue her hobbies.
Dan Seol-yeong's hobby was crafting all sorts of ingenious devices. And what she made fell into two categories: toys for her daughter or weapons useful for Dang Mujin.
The Stormflower Needle Shower was one such creation.
Dang Mujin had diligently carved wood, hammered metal, and cut leather according to her design.
Hoping the sparks wouldn't fly to Dan Seol-yeong, Dang Mujin asked Jeong Taeryeong instead of responding to Nangong Myeong.
"Hero Jeong. What did the tournament officials who came earlier ask?"
"As expected. They asked where I got the Stormflower Needle Shower."
"And what did you tell them?"
"That a fairy I met in a dream gave it to me. When I woke up, it was by my bedside."
To avoid spreading word that Dan Seol-yeong and Dang Mujin made the Stormflower Needle Shower, he had spun an outrageous tale.
Dang Mujin chuckled.
"The officials aren't fools, so they probably didn't believe it."
But Jeong Taeryeong gave an unexpected reply.
"Not completely, but they seemed to buy it, more or less."
"Pardon?"
"How to explain this..."
Jeong Taeryeong pondered for a long time before finding the right words.
"Imagine Young Hero Dang went to a horse market, and a merchant showed you a horse that covers two hundred li in a day."
"Yes."
"If the merchant claims a fairy bestowed it, what would you think?"
"I'd think it's a boastful merchant."
"Then, what if he shows a winged horse that flies a thousand li in a day and says a fairy gave it?"
An ordinary horse covers a hundred li a day at best, and a well-trained one maybe two hundred.
Winged horses don't exist, let alone ones flying a thousand li a day.
"No such horse exists in the world."
"But if you saw one?"
Dang Mujin thought deeply. A horse doing one hundred fifty or three hundred li might be debatable, but if it matched Jeong Taeryeong's description, claiming a fairy gave it wouldn't seem odd.
He'd think, "Of course it has wings and flies a thousand li—it must be from a fairy." Without the fairy origin, it'd be even stranger.
"Of course, no such horse exists... but if I saw one, I could believe it."
"Exactly. The Stormflower Needle Shower isn't a two-hundred-li steed—it's a winged horse. The gap between ordinary hidden weapons like iron caltrops or flying blades and the Stormflower Needle Shower is immense. If I hadn't seen you make it myself, Young Hero Dang, I'd have believed the fairy story too."
In short, the Stormflower Needle Shower had transcended "no way that's real" into "ah, that explains it."
It was somehow embarrassing, but Jeong Taeryeong's matter-of-fact tone lessened the shame.
"Did the officials mention tournament rules?"
"Not for now, at least. They said the rules won't change for this tournament."
"Good."
He wondered inwardly if that was right, but with the officials deciding so, there was no reason to argue. No loss either.
Just then, Hyeon-gong entered from outside the inn and spoke to Nangong Myeong.
"Your turn now."
"Got it."
Nangong Myeong switched with Hyeon-gong and went out.
The murmur outside grew briefly louder, then quieted as the door closed.
It was a time that would normally be bustling, but the inn was silent now.
The people inside were just the innkeeper, one waiter, and Dang Mujin's group.
Of course, the inn hadn't been empty from the start.
Nangong Myeong had paid the innkeeper extra to rent out the entire place, kicking everyone else out.
The waiter benefited most, dozing off with his head on his arms at a corner table.
Hyeon-gong plopped into a chair and said to Dang Mujin and Jeong Taeryeong.
"The initial merchants have thinned out, but more martial artists showed up. Their eyes were bloodshot, desperate for the Stormflower Needle Shower."
"Really?"
"And it'll only grow. We've turned back only the locals so far, but soon martial artists from other cities will swarm."
"Even then, they won't get their hands on it."
"You never know."
Hyeon-gong lowered his voice, speaking earnestly.
"Dang Mujin. What if we destroy the Stormflower Needle Shower?"
"Why suddenly?"
"It's too dangerous. Imagine it in everyone's hands, one or two per person."
Hyeon-gong looked uneasy.
The group being targeted was bad enough, but worse was it falling into the wrong hands.
To Hyeon-gong, mass-produced Stormflower Needle Showers were more dangerous than the Sima family's mass-producing meridian blockage patients.
Creating and curing meridian blockage took time, money, and risk. Training martial arts took no less.
The Sima plan merely multiplied the cost of cultivation, not creating something from nothing.
But the Stormflower Needle Shower created from nothing. Even untrained civilians ignorant of internal arts could kill martial artists.
Hyeon-gong aimed to become a sect leader and live happily. For that, he wanted martial artists' status secure.
He hadn't trained to cower before Stormflower Needle Shower wielders.
But Dang Mujin replied calmly.
"No need to worry about that."
"Why?"
"Anyone can make it. Know how long it took me? Two days."
Dang Mujin taking two days didn't mean others could match it with more time.
Even a skilled carpenter devoting dozens of days might barely make one.
The Stormflower Needle Shower had tiny, intricate parts—even Dang Mujin's skill risked failure.
But Hyeon-gong wasn't reassured.
"Even if barely one here or there, over time they'll multiply. That normal? Chaos."
"No. Even miraculously a few made, no big issue."
"Based on what?"
"You can't forge metal that precise, so imitations would carve wood. But wood warps over time, no matter the care. No guarantee this working one functions next year."
Dang Mujin struck a somewhat arrogant pose.
"Well, if I made them myself, I could stockpile before they degrade. But no one else can. Plus, sourcing materials or crafting suitable needles isn't for ordinary folk."
"I see."
Many hurdles Hyeon-gong hadn't considered, and Dang Mujin's confidence was convincing. Hyeon-gong decided not to dwell on it.
*
Night deepened.
Nangong Myeong returned from guarding the front, Dang Mujin went out and back, then it was Hyeon-gong's turn again.
Even as Hyeon-gong went out, many still lingered around the inn.
But they were all failures who'd tried storming past Dang Mujin's group, so they eyed opportunities warily, not approaching rashly.
Then, a middle-aged man appeared from afar.
He scanned surroundings carefully before cautiously approaching Hyeon-gong.
Hyeon-gong said indifferently.
"Go back. No entry."
The middle-aged elder replied.
"Not trying to enter."
"Won't relay messages to Hero Jeong either."
"Not here for Taeryeong or Okryeong. Actually, something to say to you, young hero."
Hyeon-gong paused.
The elder spoke as if intimately familiar with Jeong Taeryeong and Jeong Okryeong, which bothered him.
Hyeon-gong softened his tone.
"Probably want the Stormflower Needle Shower. Can't help. You're not the first elder like this."
"No. I don't want the Stormflower Needle Shower."
First of his kind. Curiosity flickered in Hyeon-gong's eyes.
"Then why?"
"Before Taeryeong's next match, could you hide the Stormflower Needle Shower for him?"
Asking to hide it suggested from the Jeongdo Merchant Group. Hyeon-gong pondered.
'In truth, whether Jeong Taeryeong wins or loses his bet means nothing to me. Whether Jeong Okryeong marries Nangong Myeong or the merchant heir isn't crucial. Nangong Myeong seems lukewarm too.'
'If from Jeongdo Merchant Group, they've got money. Shouldn't they show sincerity first? Coming empty-handed?'
'Can I demand payment upfront? No, bad rumors could spread. Best to reluctantly accept an offered gift.'
Hyeon-gong finished thinking in an instant and stared at the elder.
He might offer payment belatedly.
But the elder's mouth stayed shut. No payment talk coming.
'Lacking merchant ethics.'
Thus, Hyeon-gong grew genuinely angry.
"You're asking me to interfere in the match? Such audacity...!"
The middle-aged elder cut him off.
"I'm their father. Bowon Sect Leader Jeong Gunwi."
"Pardon?"
Jeong Gunwi pleaded earnestly.
"My daughter's head over heels for a man cast out by the Nangong family, losing all judgment. Young hero, think of it as saving a household—help us this once, please?"