Chapter 655
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 655
Chapter Title: Just That Guy
“He went to the Yeon Clan this time?”
At So Hwi-woong’s question, Gong Son Dan-gyeong nodded.
“I heard he headed there yesterday.”
It was news that had spread in just a single day.
“Hmm.”
A smile crept onto So Hwi-woong’s lips, as if he found it amusing.
“What for?”
“Seems to be because of one of the Fierce Dragon Corps members.”
“Ah, that Yeon Ha-min, right?”
So Hwi-woong spoke as if it had just come to him.
Yeon Ha-min, one of the Five Flowers of the Martial World, the Ice Lotus Flower.
How shocked he had been when he learned she had secretly entered the Dragon Training Pavilion.
Pavilion Lord Pang Do-yul had deliberately omitted reporting it, so Gong Son Dan-gyeong had learned of it late.
“She’s got quite the tragic backstory, doesn’t she?”
“Yes.”
Gong Son Dan-gyeong affirmed So Hwi-woong’s question.
Then he added,
“Hocheon Corps Leader Ha has a tendency to pay extra attention to his subordinates with such tragic tales.”
So Hwi-woong nodded knowingly.
“Interesting. Truly interesting. Hmm.”
His smile deepened.
“What’s so amusing about it?”
At Gong Son Dan-gyeong’s mildly scolding question, So Hwi-woong replied.
“If you think back to all the sects that guy has tangled with so far, you’ll have your answer.”
Starting with the Pang Clan, and most recently even Huashan.
Some had received help from Ha Mu-baek, others had taken hits.
Some had suffered devastating blows.
Yet every faction that had come out on the losing end from crossing paths with Ha Mu-baek had been part of the Orthodox Alliance.
The Orthodox Alliance, formed by the union of the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Clans.
The Hubei Yeon Clan was part of that Orthodox Alliance as well.
And among them, it held a position close to the leadership.
Thanks to the silence of Shaolin and Wudang from the Nine Great Sects within the Alliance, but regardless, the Orthodox Alliance currently moved at the whim of Yeon Ja-kyeong, the Yeon Clan head.
Though Yeon Ja-kyeong was staying at the Righteous Heaven Alliance headquarters, his true base was the Hubei Yeon Clan in Uichang.
If Ha Mu-baek turned that place upside down, Yeon Ja-kyeong’s power would inevitably weaken.
That was what So Hwi-woong found so amusing, what he was hoping for.
“Plus, we might even track down the tails of those shady bastards.”
“Those ‘Mil’ guys... They’re definitely moving in secrecy.”
Even the Beggars’ Sect couldn’t get solid intel on them.
They only sporadically caught traces that might belong to them.
Not even Gong Son Dan-gyeong of the Heavenly Eye Pavilion had uncovered their true nature yet.
“Great expectations breed great disappointments. The Alliance Leader knows that, and so does the Yeon Clan head. He’s the type who knows when to bend in the present for the sake of the future.”
So Hwi-woong nodded once more at Gong Son Dan-gyeong’s point.
“That’s a bit of a shame. Guess I’ll have to pin my hopes on his third son.”
So Hwi-woong rose from his seat, speaking as if he hoped a storm would brew in the Yeon Clan.
“Off to train again?”
Gong Son Dan-gyeong asked, as if it were a routine matter.
“Of course. Lately, this feeling of getting stronger and stronger is just fantastic.”
“Word is the Yeon Clan head has been holed up in his training chamber, not showing his face.”
So Hwi-woong grinned at Gong Son Dan-gyeong’s words.
“Well, he’s not in the direction I’m looking. Mu-baek is. It’s just that guy.”
With that, So Hwi-woong left the grand hall.
“Whew.”
Gong Son Dan-gyeong let out a sigh laden with multiple meanings and departed the hall as well, heading to the Heavenly Eye Pavilion.
The more So Hwi-woong threw himself into training, the more work piled up on Gong Son Dan-gyeong’s plate.
A day passed.
Yeon Ha-min spent the night sleeping alongside her mother in her mother’s room.
The mother and daughter still had mountains of stories piled up to share.
Ha Mu-baek, Ha Seol-ran, and the children spent the night in another room prepared in Jin Na-yeon’s annex.
A refreshing morning dawned.
The children roamed the annex’s front courtyard, looking around in wide-eyed wonder.
When had these two kids ever visited a great clan like this?
They had seen the Righteous Heaven Alliance headquarters and the Fierce Dragon Corps barracks, but a clan steeped in history and tradition felt entirely different.
However, sensing the clan’s atmosphere wasn’t welcoming toward them as outsiders, the children only wandered around the front courtyard.
Yeon Gong-hu, who had come to join his mother and younger sister for breakfast, spotted the two kids.
“The young lady and young master must be full of curiosity.”
The children jumped in surprise at Yeon Gong-hu’s smiling approach.
“Greetings, Young Master Yeon.”
“Hello.”
They hurriedly bowed, their faces flushing red.
“Want me to show you around the clan after breakfast?”
“Huh?”
“Really?”
Gong Hae-bin and Gong Hae-jun blinked in shock.
It was a suggestion they hadn’t even dreamed of.
Just then, Ha Mu-baek appeared in the front courtyard.
“If you want to go, it’s fine. No issues if you’re with Young Master Yeon.”
Gong Hae-jun nodded vigorously at his master’s permission.
Gong Hae-bin shyly nodded as well.
The Yeon In-hu she had seen yesterday was handsome, but the man before her now had a handsome face too.
If Yeon In-hu’s looks were unrealistically perfect, like something out of a painting,
Then Yeon Gong-hu’s were realistically handsome, the kind you could encounter nearby.
That made Gong Hae-bin’s cheeks burn even redder.
“Sis?”
Gong Hae-jun tilted his head at his sister’s reaction.
But she urgently grabbed his hand.
“Let’s go eat breakfast.”
She pulled him inside.
“They’re delightful children.”
Yeon Gong-hu said with a laugh.
They seemed even more endearing as siblings.
He had an older brother and younger sister, but a big sister and little brother like that looked great too.
“Yeah.”
“I never imagined you’d take on disciples like that.”
Ha Mu-baek chuckled at Yeon Gong-hu’s words.
How well did he think he knew him, to say something like that?
“My late father said the same. He couldn’t imagine what kind of people Ha Mu-baek would take as disciples.”
Ha Mu-baek slightly furrowed his brow.
“I thought he was the quiet type, but he was surprisingly chatty.”
He was referring to Yeon Baek-un.
“Must be because we were apart; he had a lot to say in his letters.”
Suddenly, Ha Mu-baek recalled how Yeon Baek-un’s tent lamp had burned late into the night.
“So that’s what it was.”
Ha Mu-baek mused to himself and chuckled softly.
“There’s been a subtle change overnight.”
Ha Mu-baek observed Yeon Gong-hu as he spoke.
“Thanks to you, Corps Leader.”
Yeon Gong-hu replied with genuine gratitude.
Last night.
Yeon Gong-hu’s training continued.
As always, training alone.
But this time was different.
He was alone, yet not alone.
Beyond Yeon Gong-hu’s sword lingered the exact illusion of Ha Mu-baek from the day before.
Yeon Gong-hu fought it as if it were real combat.
He died ten times in ten bouts.
Still, he was advancing bit by bit.
“It’d be great if I could spar with you once more before I leave.”
Yeon Gong-hu smiled at Ha Mu-baek’s words.
“It’ll definitely happen.”
“Let’s head in. I’m starving.”
With that, the two moved inside the annex for breakfast.
An early morning clan meeting was convened.
Acting Clan Head Yeon Baek-pung sat in the seat of honor, surrounded by the clan’s elders and protectors.
The current clan head was Yeon Baek-pung’s father, Yeon Ja-kyeong.
In other words, all the elders and protectors were uncles to Yeon Baek-pung.
The only one of the same generation as Yeon Baek-pung was his younger brother, Yeon Baek-u.
“So, you called this emergency clan meeting to punish that child Yeon Ha-min?”
Grand Elder Yeon I-kyeong.
He asked with clear displeasure.
“Yes. She left the clan without permission, and because of that, my eldest brother met a tragic end. We must hold her accountable.”
“Accountable for what? The previous acting clan head ignored everyone’s pleas and unilaterally led the clan’s warriors into the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest, causing massive damage to the clan. How is Yeon Ha-min leaving the clan a crime? Who in the Yeon Clan ever got permission before leaving?”
Yeon I-kyeong pressed, unable to accept it.
“Yeon Ha-min was under a confinement order from the clan head and acting clan head. She was not to leave the clan premises. But she did, so she disobeyed orders and committed a crime.”
The room fell silent at Yeon Baek-pung’s words.
It was true.
Everyone knew the purpose of the confinement order.
A few showed visible dissatisfaction.
“Even so, only the clan head and acting clan head who issued the order can discuss her punishment. The clan head is away at the Righteous Heaven Alliance, and the one who issued it is no longer of this world. Does the current acting clan head have the authority to call a clan meeting like this?”
“As you said, with the clan head absent and the previous acting clan head deceased, I can’t punish her on my own authority. So I’ve called this clan meeting per clan law to decide the punishment. A decision here holds the same weight as the clan head’s.”
A few nodded.
It was logically sound.
“Then I’ll state my opinion first. There’s no basis for punishing Yeon Ha-min, so I oppose.”
He was firm.
“She disobeyed the clan head’s order.”
Yeon Baek-pung asked in a dissatisfied tone.
“She’s already in the Righteous Heaven Alliance. And do you not know who she came back with? Don’t stir up trouble in the clan just to force punishment on her.”
Yeon I-kyeong didn’t back down.
“Grand Elder, this is clan business. Why would the great Yeon Clan cower before some corps leader from the Righteous Heaven Alliance?”
“Hmph. If there were a righteous cause, I’d step forward first and boldly. But there isn’t. Isn’t this just the acting clan head’s ugly ambition?”
Yeon Baek-pung’s face twisted at Yeon I-kyeong’s blunt words.
Sibling succession.
He had been pulling out all stops to get it recognized in the clan meeting, but that old man was the problem.
He opposed it vehemently, veins bulging in his neck.
It wasn’t incomprehensible.
The old man had fought on the front lines in the last war.
And the one who had fought there alongside him was his own second brother, Yeon Baek-un.
Yeon Baek-un died in the war, while Yeon I-kyeong suffered severe internal injuries.
After returning to the clan, he secluded himself to recover and only began appearing again two years ago.
He emerged after Yeon Ha-min left the clan and ascended to grand elder based on his war merits.
Yeon I-kyeong.
Yeon Ja-kyeong’s immediate younger brother.
His abilities were outstanding, nearly matching his brother’s, but as the second son, not the eldest,
His limits were clear.
Was that why?
In rebellion against Yeon Ja-kyeong, who sought only the clan’s growth, Yeon I-kyeong championed the greater good and acted accordingly.
That’s why he had been the first to join the last Great Martial War.
It was defiance against Yeon Ja-kyeong’s reluctance toward the war.
Yeon Ja-kyeong had barely given Yeon Baek-un a small force and taken credit for it.
So he had stormed out of the clan himself.
He rolled through the battlefield, returned on the brink of death, barely recovered, and faced the grim reality.
He couldn’t even face Jin Na-yeon out of shame.
And now, after a year and a half, Yeon Ha-min returns to see her mother, and they want to punish her?
Of course Yeon I-kyeong would rebel.
Yeon Baek-u sat at the very end of the meeting table.
He watched the whole scene with amusement.
Then.
“A letter from the clan head.”
The reply to the urgent report sent to the Righteous Heaven Alliance two days ago—when Yeon Ha-min and Ha Mu-baek appeared at Uichang’s docks—had arrived.
It was handed directly to Yeon Baek-pung.
His face twisted upon reading it.
Bam!
He slammed the table, tossed the letter down, and stormed out of the meeting hall.
“That... that...”
Yeon I-kyeong frowned.
How dare he treat the clan head’s letter like that.
The other protectors and elders frowned at his rude, arrogant behavior.
Yeon I-kyeong, the grand elder, checked the letter Yeon Baek-pung had left behind.
A glint appeared in his eyes.
It was due to his brother’s unexpected decision.
“It says to leave whatever Yeon Ha-min does in the clan alone. Don’t pursue her past crime of breaking confinement. Also, lift all restrictions on Jin Na-yeon.”
“Huh?”
“What?”
“Pardon?”
Murmurs erupted immediately here and there.
It was an order none of them had anticipated.
This rendered the clan meeting pointless.
They had called it precisely because there was no direct clan head’s decision, to give it equivalent authority.
But now the clan head had issued one directly.
Complete with his official seal.
It made sense why Yeon Baek-pung had raged and left.
Everyone knew his desires.
Most in the room hadn’t agreed to his sibling succession anyway.
This order nullified even that.
‘What in the world...’
At the farthest seat in the meeting.
Yeon Baek-u sat calmly, but under the table, he clenched his fist tightly.
So tight that his nails dug in and drew blood.