Holy Relic (5)
The next day, the Jisang Monk headed straight for the Repentance Cave.
I didn't expect him to go in right away. He's got more resolve than I thought.
He'd met with the abbot of the Precepts Academy at dawn and entered the cave without a single possession.
In truth, the Repentance Caves came in various levels.
From places to lock up truly heinous criminals who'd committed grave sins, or to punish monks who'd broken the precepts, all the way to secluded spots for voluntary meditation when one felt the need for personal repentance.
But all Repentance Caves shared one thing in common.
Once you entered—whether for a term set by others or by yourself—you couldn't leave until that time was up.
And no news from the outside world reached inside.
Of course, outsiders could never set foot there either.
Hearing that the Jisang Monk had entered the Repentance Cave, I flashed a satisfied smile.
Time to get started, then?
My decision to help the Jisang Monk wasn't just out of pity, nor solely because Grandmaster Hyeolgon had appeared in my dream.
It was because I suspected the Murim Alliance was behind this plot.
I didn't know the exact reason, but someone from the Murim Alliance was definitely plotting to desecrate Grandmaster Hyeolgon's holy relic.
So, I had to smash their scheme to pieces.
Petty revenge like this would pave the way for the true vengeance I sought.
Hmm, looks like I'll have to move fast.
When the appointed day arrived, Haechul set off for Shaolin Temple.
"Aigoo! You take donations like it's your due, but this road to Shaolin is a total mess!"
His grumbling from inside the carriage drew a worried response from his escort.
"Please watch your words, sir. This is Shaolin territory. If anything disrespectful slips out, it'll cause trouble."
Haechul snorted at that.
"One of those monks is my great-nephew."
"……."
His younger sister had been widowed, left with one son, and returned to her parents' home.
Soon after, she caught the eye of the head of the Song Clan from a nearby village.
From Haechul's perspective, this was cause for open arms.
But entering as a concubine meant she couldn't bring her son along.
In the end, she'd had to leave the boy with her family back home.
To Haechul's relatives, though, the kid was nothing but a burdensome lump.
So they'd shipped him off to Shaolin.
And lied to the sister, claiming a Shaolin warrior monk had spotted the boy's talent and taken him in.
She'd fallen ill not long after becoming the Song Clan head's concubine and passed away a decade ago.
Tsk! If she'd just held on a bit longer, I wouldn't be dealing with this mess now!
Haechul had come into sudden wealth and started blowing it like a nouveau riche.
But as the famine dragged on, his fortunes began to decline.
Most would cut back on spending, but not him.
Just make more money, right?
He dabbled in business, lost everything, and racked up a debt of thirty thousand nyang.
If his sister were alive, he might've gotten help from the Song Clan head, but she was long gone.
Her death had already soured relations, especially after he'd squeezed a hefty "condolence" sum out of them.
Begging the clan head for "just thirty thousand nyang in silver" would get him kicked to the curb in an instant.
As he seriously pondered selling his land, someone made him an intriguing offer.
"You have a nephew at Shaolin Temple?"
Everyone knew his great-nephew was a Shaolin warrior monk—Haechul had bragged about it endlessly to the villagers.
The boy had been a headache when his sister first brought him home, but once he became a warrior monk, he turned into a point of pride.
"That's right."
"We've heard you're short on cash. We'll pay off that debt for you."
"……What's your angle?"
"Does that matter? What matters is we can give you the money. Just do us one favor."
"Speak."
"Have you heard? Grandmaster Hyeolgon's holy relic has arrived at Shaolin."
"I heard."
"They say there's a spiritual elixir inside it. Bring it to us."
In the end, he accepted the deal and tasked his great-nephew—the Jisang Monk—with the job.
The fool who still didn't know his mother was dead.
And the idiot who thought Haechul was still living in poverty.
The temple gates were soon in sight.
He changed clothes inside the carriage—nothing like the rags he usually ignored, a world apart from what he had on now.
But to win his nephew's sympathy, he needed to look the part.
He stepped down from the carriage and approached the gates.
"How may I help you?"
"I-I'm here to see the Jisang Monk. Tell him his great-uncle has come."
One of the warrior monks guarding the gate went inside, then returned shaking his head.
"I'm sorry, but you can't see him today."
"What?"
"The Jisang Monk has entered the Repentance Cave."
Haechul froze for a moment.
Today was the day they'd agreed on.
With his mother's well-being at stake, he'd assumed the monk would keep his word.
But the Repentance Cave…?
Did he get caught tampering with Grandmaster Hyeolgon's remains?
It wasn't impossible.
If so, he had only one option.
"I see. Then I'll be on my way…."
Get out fast. Linger too long, and he might get tangled up as an accomplice.
But soon, darkness clouded his vision.
His chance to clear thirty thousand nyang in debt—gone.
As he trudged down the mountain, a man holding a debt note approached him.
"Are you, by chance, Lord Haechul?"
"Who… are you?"
"Someone the Jisang Monk asked me to meet. He has an item for his great-uncle. So, are you Lord Haechul?"
Haechul's face lit up.
He knew exactly what the "item" was.
"Yes! I'm the Jisang Monk's great-uncle, Haechul!"
The man handed over a pouch.
"Here it is, as requested. The spiritual elixir from inside Grandmaster Hyeolgon's holy relic."
"This is it?"
"Yes. He worked so hard to get it but ended up dragged into the Repentance Cave…."
"Oh no!"
"He said he couldn't deliver it personally, so he asked me to pass it on instead."
"But… who are you to run such an errand?"
"The Jisang Monk once saved my life. I'm just repaying the favor."
From afar, I watched the Jisang Monk's great-uncle climb into his carriage and vanish.
Haechul, was it?
Snap!
I folded the debt note.
The one I held was a Face-Veiling Fan. Using it ensured the target wouldn't remember my face.
Handy for times like this.
Haechul clutched the pouch I'd given him, grinning ear to ear—but who knew how long that would last?
What I'd put in that pouch wasn't the spiritual elixir from Grandmaster Hyeolgon's holy relic.
There was no such thing to begin with.
So what was inside?
Palgap approached me as I chuckled to myself.
"Young master, does that fool know it's horse dung?"
"No way. He's convinced it's the real deal."
"He was clutching it to his chest like treasure."
"Exactly."
"What happens if he eats it, thinking it's a real elixir?"
"What do you think? He becomes a guy who ate horse shit."
"I'm worried some innocent might eat it by mistake."
"No need. That won't happen."
……
……
I tailed Haechul to his home and lay in wait on his roof.
With the "elixir" in hand, he'd summon his black道 client next.
No way he'd dawdle with repayment day looming.
Sure enough, that night, a man visited Haechul's house—the same one in jade-green robes from before.
The thick black道 aura rolling off him made me grimace as I shifted to the guesthouse roof.
"Here's the elixir, as promised. My great-nephew pulled it from Grandmaster Hyeolgon's remains."
"Ho? It really existed!"
"What do you mean by that?"
"Nothing! So, what happened to the remains?"
"He said he got it from the head area, so they're probably ruined."
"Makes sense."
That was the line I had fed him earlier.
I'd specifically said the elixir came from the head.
The black道 man pocketed the pouch and said,
"Good work."
"And our deal…?"
"Don't worry. I'll be back within two days. You'll get what you want then."
He rose and left the guesthouse.
Now came the important part.
I swiftly tailed him.
I'd followed him before but got nothing useful.
This time was different.
He'd scored an unexpected elixir and perfectly carried out his orders.
Now he'd report to his superiors for real.
As expected, he headed for Luoyang.
Wow… right under the Murim Alliance's nose? Ballsy. Must have solid backing.
I slipped into the house undetected once more.
"So, you damaged the face? Well done."
"That settles it, then?"
"Yeah. We did what they wanted. Poor Shaolin. Tsk tsk, shoulda kept better watch on their disciples."
"You're really giving that clan head thirty thousand nyang?"
"You nuts? Hell no. We just bail. Get ready to split."
"Got it. But why are they so desperate to destroy Grandmaster Hyeolgon's remains?"
"How should I know what those guys think? We follow orders, take the cash."
Figures.
No way they'd actually cover thirty thousand nyang.
These guys seemed stronger than the ones I'd seen before.
And from their talk, they knew more than the average thugs.
I sent a sound transmission to my escort warriors nearby.
- Let's move!
They donned masks from their sleeves.
Smiling face masks—the same ones from when we'd stripped that Ma Clan head who harassed Han Jae-ik.
They startled when we burst in, scrambling in panic.
"Urk!"
"Hrk!"
"Argh!"
Strong as they were, they couldn't handle me and my escorts.
We subdued them in seconds.
"Wh-who are you?"
"Why should I tell you?"
"Y-you've made a huge mistake!"
"Worried about us? You're nicer than you look."
"Wh-what bullshit!"
I chuckled.
"So, who ordered you to desecrate Grandmaster Hyeolgon's remains?"
"I-I don't know!"
I nodded to the Jin Yu warrior.
He immediately applied Bone-Dislocating Technique on the man.
It destroyed joints without spilling blood—perfect for interrogation due to the agony.
And no mess.
"Gaaargh!"
"You really don't know?"
"I swear, I can't remember!"
He writhed and screamed.
"When I try to recall, it's like… I can't picture who!"
The Seo-u warrior sent me a quiet transmission.
- Seems truthful.
Mind-sealing spell? Makes sense—they wouldn't assign such a sloppy job otherwise.
The others reacted the same.
Sigh. Thought I'd finally caught a real lead….
- What now?
I gave a wry smile in reply.
- Handle quietly.
We couldn't afford loose ends either.
If they might meet higher-ups, we'd use them as bait—but from "bail" talk, unlikely.
One-time gig.
So I struck their fatal points, killing them cleanly.
Heading back to Shaolin meant minimizing blood.
While disposing of the bodies, I retrieved the pouch from the jade-robed man's chest.
I'd erased any lingering aura, and since it was made from Shaolin monk robe fabric, no one would trace it to me—but still, better safe.
As I lifted the pouch to burn it with Samadhi True Fire, something felt off.
Hm?
The weight… lighter?
I opened it and realized.
Wow, this bastard.
"What is it?"
I chuckled at the Mingjong warrior's question.
"He skimmed half of it."
I'd told Haechul that consuming it would boost one's inner power by a decade—even for a commoner.
"Maybe he'll sell it for cash."
I shook my head.
"Normal people might. But not him."
"Then?"
"He'll eat it himself."