Chapter 559
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 559
Chapter Title: Did He Pass Peacefully?
Ha Mu-baek fixed his gaze entirely on Gwan Po, who bowed his head deeply.
"Come inside first. We'll talk more once we're in."
Ha Mu-baek led the way into the Yuun Martial Hall, followed by Gwan Ha-kyeong and Pung Geon, then Gwi Hwi and Wi Su-yeon, with Gwan Po entering last.
Thud.
The main gate of the Yuun Martial Hall closed shut.
The group settled into one of the annex buildings that Gwan Ha-kyeong and Pung Geon had been using to guard the Yuun Martial Hall.
"So this is Yu Gwi-gwang's place?"
"Yes."
Gwan Ha-kyeong answered Ha Mu-baek, who had glanced around before asking.
"And where's Yu Gwi-gwang?"
The conversation, interrupted by Gwan Po's arrival, picked up again.
They had fled to a suitable spot outside Sangnam to escape the Plum Fragrance Sect's attack.
They had agreed to wait there for ten days, and if neither Pung Geon nor Gwan Ha-kyeong showed up, they would move elsewhere.
"Hah. That scoundrel..."
Ha Mu-baek listened calmly, but it was Gwi Hwi who spat out his anger.
He couldn't hold back his fury at what his fellow disciple had done.
"How many days left?"
"Six days, sir."
"That seems sorted out, so go bring him."
"Yes, sir."
As Gwan Ha-kyeong started to rise, Pung Geon stopped him.
"I'll go."
And with that, Pung Geon left the Yuun Martial Hall.
Once the tales tying the Plum Fragrance Sect and Yuun Martial Hall reached their conclusion,
Ha Mu-baek turned his eyes to Gwi Hwi.
"What brings the Sword Sage here? It doesn't seem related. You're not here to block the Plum Fragrance Sect's nonsense, are you? And come to think of it, what was that old monster doing here?"
He had handled the immediate matters first, and now questions arose about the circumstances.
He knew the tension between Yuun Martial Hall and the Plum Fragrance Sect through the Open Faction and Hawon Sect, but the Plum Blossom Sword Sage and Huashan Sword Fragrance were truly unexpected.
Gwi Hwi and Wi Su-yeon exchanged glances.
Their eyes then lingered on Gwan Ha-kyeong and Gwan Po.
They hesitated to discuss their sect's swordsmanship in front of Ha Mu-baek, let alone with others present.
"If you don't want to say, then don't."
Ha Mu-baek spoke as if he had no curiosity at all.
"But still."
He continued.
"It's a hassle for me too... but after seeing that old monster like that, I suppose I have to visit Huashan once. I need to check where he got that demonic energy from."
A faint suspicion of Huashan Sect laced his words.
As if Un Se-hyuk wasn't the only one tainted by demonic energy.
The Plum Blossom Sword Sage Gwi Hwi frowned.
No matter that it was Ha Mu-baek—even suspecting his sect, Huashan, in such irreverent terms was rude.
"That's an insult to Huashan."
A heavy declaration.
Ha Mu-baek shrugged at the words.
"If it felt that way, I apologize for that part. But we still need to confirm if demonic energy has seeped into Huashan and where from."
Ha Mu-baek yielded half a step.
But he didn't fully withdraw his suspicion that demonic energy might lurk in Huashan.
Gwi Hwi said no more on the matter.
Wi Su-yeon watched her martial uncle and Ha Mu-baek, lost in thought.
If it's him, maybe there's another interpretation...
Her master's tales about him.
That Ha Mu-baek might know the answer.
Added to the sight of him overwhelming her grand martial uncle.
Such expectations arose.
And those expectations outpaced her thoughts, spilling from her lips.
"Um, Corps Leader, what do you think of Huashan's Plum Blossom Sword?"
Gwi Hwi startled at the sudden question from beside him and looked at Wi Su-yeon.
Ha Mu-baek eyed her with an amused expression.
"So that's why you came to Yuun Martial Hall."
A smile tugged at his lips.
Seeing the anticipation in Wi Su-yeon's eyes, Ha Mu-baek answered concisely.
"It's a superb swordsmanship, worthy of being called one of the world's finest."
Praise.
That was all.
Ha Mu-baek's words.
But had a supreme master like him truly sensed only that from the Plum Blossom Swordsmanship?
As Wi Su-yeon hesitated, Ha Mu-baek continued.
"Looks like you've hit a wall. The Sword Sage here would know better than me. I'm an outsider, after all."
A clear line drawn: he wouldn't meddle in another sect's martial arts.
"Thank you."
Wi Su-yeon bowed her head politely.
Her abrupt question could be seen as rude, after all.
As the atmosphere settled somewhat, Gwan Po burst out.
"So why the hell did you grab me?"
Ha Mu-baek looked at Gwan Po.
"What's your name?"
Since he hadn't even known that until now, it was the first question that came to mind.
"Gwan Po."
"Great Power Guan Manor?"
At the second question, Gwan Po's body stiffened.
His face filled with shock.
He hadn't imagined this man would know his clan.
Ha Mu-baek nodded at the expression.
"That's right."
"How do you know...?"
A heavy voice of confusion flowed from Gwan Po's mouth.
"What's your relation to Won Gak?"
Gwan Po's eyes widened as if they might tear.
He never dreamed his master's name would come from this man's lips.
"How do you know my master...? Who the hell are you?"
"Looks like Won Gak never mentioned me."
Ha Mu-baek's eyes softened slightly at the mention of Won Gak's disciple.
Since Gwan Po showed no reaction to Ha Mu-baek's name, it seemed his master hadn't told him anything.
"Hmm. I never imagined the faction that helped with the Black Face Branch Leader's funeral was Great Power Guan Manor. Won Gak must be gone too, then."
Gwan Po's face showed exhaustion from shock, but his body trembled violently.
He knew the reason he became Black Face Branch's vice leader.
Only the branch leader Seon Gyu and advisor Sa Hun knew that fact.
"The Hawon Sect knew."
Ha Mu-baek said nonchalantly.
But Gwan Po ground his teeth.
If the Hawon Sect knew, it meant it had slipped from Seon Gyu's mouth.
Probably while drunk and bedding a courtesan, letting it out unwittingly.
That bastard.
He had worried he might cause trouble with drink and women, but to leak his personal history...
"Did Won Gak... pass peacefully?"
Gwan Po had to set aside thoughts of Seon Gyu at the follow-up question.
His master's story had come up.
"He sacrificed himself to save a worthless disciple like me. If he'd just let me die, Master would still be alive today..."
Ha Mu-baek had no formal disciples yet.
There were disciple-like fellows, but none official.
Still, he understood Won Gak's heart.
If it were Seol Rang in such a position, he would gladly make the same choice.
"I get that his dantian was struck by a demonic art... but how? The Demonic Cult wouldn't leave survivors."
Gwan Po couldn't fathom the identity of this man, Fierce Dragon Corps Leader Ha Mu-baek.
He spoke as if he knew everything.
"Luck. Both me and Master. The Demonic Cult bastards thought we'd all died and left. I was as good as dead, and Master had severe internal injuries and lost consciousness, but they arrogantly assumed they'd killed him and departed. But how do you know about me and Master? Did you hear from him?"
"The seal on your dantian."
Ha Mu-baek's answer.
Gwan Po now gazed at Ha Mu-baek with a detached expression.
"Your dantian, which should have shattered from demonic energy, is forcibly held by that seal. The more you use internal energy, the weaker the seal becomes, until your dantian shatters and the lingering demonic energy consumes you, leading to death."
He knew it all too well.
"How do you know so precisely? I never heard of a Ha Mu-baek in our clan."
"Won Gak was my subordinate."
Gwan Po's expression changed.
"Aren't you the Fierce Dragon Corps Leader? My master was..."
In the Hocheon Corps.
A fearsome group where even a master at the peak realm was merely at the end of the seats.
The Righteous Heaven Alliance Leader's bodyguard and personal guard.
All he knew about his master leaving the clan for the Righteous Heaven Alliance was that much.
And then, his master's dying words suddenly resurfaced.
"Survive. Maintain the seal I placed as long as possible and live on somehow. If fate leads you to the Corps Leader, perhaps you can recover. So survive. That's my earnest plea..."
The latter part he had forgotten resurfaced.
That if fate led him to the Corps Leader, recovery might be possible.
He hadn't even held hope for such unbelievable words.
That's why he had forgotten until now.
No way...?
Back then, he had no time to wonder who the Corps Leader was.
He met Seon Gyu, held the funeral, fled the chaos, settled in Sangnam, and lived as a pimp.
No thoughts on it.
But now, his mind raced.
If his Hocheon Corps master referred to a Corps Leader, it had to be the Hocheon Corps Leader.
Why hadn't it occurred to him until now?
And this man claiming to be his master's subordinate.
Gwi Hwi, Wi Su-yeon, and Gwan Ha-kyeong quietly watched the two men's exchange.
An unexpected tale of connection unfolded.
"Great Power Hundred Net Art. If used well, the Great Power Guan Manor's internal art can create a seal to suppress the dantian. It's a seal, but closer to a means of treating the wounded dantian."
Ha Mu-baek spoke calmly.
"In the heat of that brutal war, quite a few comrades I helped with Won Gak's technique survived. That's how I knew it, and recognized it on you."
"......"
"Won Gak was originally an orphan, taken in by Great Power Guan Manor. When intel came that Demonic Cult forces might pass near the manor, he asked me to let him go repay the grace. I had no choice but to send him."
"......"
Gwan Po listened silently to Ha Mu-baek's steady recounting.
"I wanted to move with him and help. But I couldn't. I was tied to an even fiercer battlefield. All I could do for Won Gak was ensure he left that battlefield safely and returned to Great Power Guan Manor."
Did the past resurface?
Regret and longing colored Ha Mu-baek's voice.
"He never returned after, and with no word from Great Power Guan Manor... I feared the worst."
"He never mentioned any of that."
"That's Won Gak for you. A subordinate I personally respect."
Won Gak was far older than Ha Mu-baek.
Yet he faithfully carried out his young corps leader's orders, always charging into battle with full force.
All Hocheon Corps members were like that.
Thus, no member was unimportant to Ha Mu-baek.
"What were Won Gak's last words?"
And as Won Gak's corps leader.
Now meeting his successor, he had a duty to learn his will.
So he asked.
First, with apology for not seeking Won Gak sooner.
After the war, bound to Righteous Heaven Alliance, to his family, he had forgotten his old subordinates.
Meeting Gwan Po brought it back.
He had lost too many to search for each one.
He had simply buried them deep in his heart.
"Survive. Survive somehow."
Gwan Po said in a trembling voice.
Longing for his master imbued the words.
Ha Mu-baek nodded faintly.
For Won Gak, who burned his life to seal such a disciple's dantian, those would surely be his words.
"If fate leads you to the Corps Leader, there might be a way to heal. So survive no matter what."
His master's complete last words, remembered today, flowed from Gwan Po's mouth.