Chapter 132: Chapter 132

Deep inside an unknown mountain valley.

It was a place far too beautiful to be considered a landscape created by human hands. The scenery was so wondrous that it would not be strange to call it a peach blossom spring, as if it would steal the gaze of anyone who beheld it.

Every single building erected in the surroundings also appeared elegant and dignified, possessing a beauty that surpassed even the Imperial Palace in some aspects.

In such a place, two people were walking.

A man in blood-red robes walking casually along the path.

The one following behind him was without a doubt Man Hu-ryang.

He followed with expressions and gestures that suggested it was even an honor to walk together, unable to properly raise his head. Seeing only that, one could tell how great his fear of this man was.

“Hmm? You have a face that looks like you have something to say.”

“N-No, it is nothing.”

The man in blood-red robes stopped walking and turned his gaze.

It was merely a light, passing glance, but Man Hu-ryang trembled all over. That was how much he feared this man. Just standing together made him feel the illusion of having tasted death several times already.

“Are you curious as to why I saved Murong Hyeok-mun?”

“……Yes.”

“Haha.”

The man in blood-red robes chuckled softly and nodded.

Indeed, he would be curious.

To pick up a pawn that was thought to have been discarded.

From the perspective of Man Hu-ryang, who moved everything through schemes and threw things away when deemed unnecessary, it might be something difficult to accept readily.

However, the man in blood-red robes was different.

His eyes flashed as he laughed.

The smile playing on his lips was clearly a sneer mocking others.

He looked at Man Hu-ryang with that gaze and spoke.

“Do you know what is needed for a person to become strong?”

“W-Weapons, martial arts befitting them…… and talent, would it not be?”

“No. It is anger, jealousy, and the intent to kill directed at someone.”

“…….”

Man Hu-ryang was lost for words.

He prided himself on having seen many martial artists in his life. Not only the Sword Emperor, but also most of the Five Emperors, the Seven Stars, and the Ten Venerables.

Yet, not a single one of them had ever said such a thing.

For they all said that in order to grow strong, one mostly needed talent and martial arts to match it.

But Man Hu-ryang did not deny it.

For these were the words of none other than the man in blood-red robes.

If he said the sky was the earth, then it was the earth, and if he said the earth was the sky, then it was the sky. His words carried more weight than the decrees of the Emperor, and not even heaven could block his actions.

“Therefore, I took him in. For he will surely turn this Martial World into a wasteland.”

“……What meaning does that have?”

Man Hu-ryang, shaking off his fear, asked back.

It was not easily understood.

Was this man’s goal not to rule and possess the Martial World? Then why did he wish to divide it, make them fight each other, and throw it into chaos?

Even with the power he currently possessed, he should be able to subjugate not only the Demonic Cult but also the orthodox factions and the outer territories.

Because he could not contain his curiosity, he asked again.

“Destroying two things is more amusing than destroying one, and suppressing and taking a noisy place is more amusing than grasping and taking a quiet place.”

Only then did Man Hu-ryang realize this man’s purpose.

By killing the Sword Emperor and corrupting the Sword Saint, he had divided the orthodox Martial World. With this, the orthodox Martial World split into two forces, and as a result, the unorthodox path began to move, targeting that gap.

Since they could not unite as in the past, the Martial Alliance had no choice but to be struck helplessly, and consequently, the entire Central Plains Martial World would be greatly shaken.

Furthermore…….

“Black Wind Demon God…… is the reason you sent him the same?”

“Indeed. Hahaha, you learn two things when taught one.”

Man Hu-ryang swallowed hard.

Black Wind Demon God.

A being created by summoning his soul into a new body using the descent ritual possessed by the man in blood-red robes. Although that body was different from the one a thousand years ago, he possessed power that made it no exaggeration to call him the Black Wind Demon God himself.

“I also want him to draw someone out.”

“By someone, you mean……?”

“I wonder…… who could it be.”

A smirk formed at the corner of the man’s mouth.

However, seeing his brightly shining eyes, he realized it was by no means an opponent the man did not know, but because he did not dare to ask, Man Hu-ryang simply lowered his head.

“The tiles have been cast. I wonder how they will move…….”

The smile of the man in blood-red robes grew progressively deeper.

* * *

“We can’t find him despite searching like this…… Could he perhaps not be in Hunan?”

Somewhere in Yueyang with a view of Lake Dongting.

Zhuge Yeon sat down with a dejected expression and let out a long sigh. Did he know how much time had already passed? The world was changing rapidly, and the Zhuge Family also had its own path to follow accordingly, yet her father showed no intention of giving up and continued his search for the person.

In fact, even the appearance of the person they were looking for was so blurry that she could no longer remember it, to the point she thought that simply giving up might be the easiest option.

Zhuge Yeon chewed on her sweet and grumbled.

“No, no, I am sure he is here. If we can only find him…… returning the Martial World to the world of the orthodox path would be an easy task.”

“I feel like I’ve heard that saying a hundred times already.”

As Zhuge Yeon shrugged her shoulders, Zhuge Un smiled awkwardly. Indeed, since he was acting like this without even managing the family, he might seem pathetic from his daughter’s perspective.

Furthermore, was not the orthodox Martial World standing on the brink of survival?

‘It’s obvious what will happen if we go back.’

Zhuge Un also knew this very well.

He knew that both the Martial Alliance and the Cheondo Association were looking for him. In the case of the Cheondo Association, since they were a fellow member of the Eight Great Families, they would naturally assume he would add his strength to theirs.

Conversely, Seon-jin, who had now become the Alliance Leader, would not want to lose someone like Zhuge Un who had assisted the Sword Emperor so well. The Martial Alliance still desired harmony with the Eight Great Families, and if they returned, it could show the magnanimity of accepting them back.

Therefore, they would try to bring Zhuge Un into the embrace of the Martial Alliance by any means.

As it was a clear situation where he would get caught between these two organizations, Zhuge Un had no desire to return immediately.

‘In truth, I gave up on searching for that expert a long time ago.’

But he could not bring himself to speak his true thoughts.

How could he find someone who did not appear even after scouring the entirety of Hunan? Furthermore, since they might have already left Hunan for somewhere else, was this not truly searching for a needle in a desert?

Zhuge Un glanced at his daughter.

She looked cute chewing on her sweet even while drooping listlessly.

‘Right, let’s just think of it as a father-daughter sightseeing trip after a long time.’

“Father.”

“Yes, what is it?”

“Could it be…… you aren’t avoiding going back because you think there will be troublesome matters if we return to the family? You’ve already given up on finding the person…… and you’re thinking of this as just wandering around on a sightseeing trip with me…… You aren’t thinking that, right?”

Zhuge Un momentarily turned his head with a startled expression.

Though she was a child who seemed blank, she could be incredibly sharp at times. It was to the extent that she had to be said to have inherited the blood of the Zhuge Family deeply.

“N-No, it is not.”

“Then let’s go back…… please! I’m exhausted now.”

Zhuge Yeon whined in a desperate voice.

There was not much money left now. It would take a long time to return to the family, and the remaining money was only about twenty silver taels.

It felt like they would barely make it if they scrimped and saved.

“Haha…… Is it, is it that hard on you?”

“It would be better to just hire the Beggars’ Sect.”

Zhuge Yeon, shrugging her shoulders, let out a sigh and raised her head. Before her eyes, the grand sight of Lake Dongting came into view. As Yueyang was a place famous for Lake Dongting, she had wanted to take in this scenery at least.

But you see.

She had not wanted to see it in such an exhausted and miserable state.

Nor did she want to be with her sweaty father. If she were to be with someone, would it not be better to be with the person who would become her future husband?

Zhuge Yeon, who had dreamed of such romance, could only let out a succession of sighs at the utterly miserable reality.

Splash!

Just then, a sound was heard from somewhere.

‘Hmm?’

Both of them turned their heads.

For they had not thought in the slightest that anyone would be there.

Stealing over toward the direction of the sound, they found a small girl in a spot hidden from view by a large rock.

She wore a large hat and held a fishing rod in one hand.

Beside her, a fairly large basket was slightly submerged in the water, and seeing it move, it seemed she had caught quite a few fish.

Splash!

Once again, the girl reeled in a fish.

It was big.

Even Zhuge Un, who loved fishing, widened his eyes. She had already pulled out two fish of a size that he, who had spent thirty years of his life fishing, had never caught.

To think that young child had won a struggle of strength against them?

The father and daughter stared at it with dazed expressions.

“Nnngh!”

It seemed she got another bite.

The sight of her pulling the fishing rod with all her might looked difficult. Had she hooked something even bigger than what she had caught so far? A doubt arose as to whether she had caught the ground.

However, looking closely, the fishing line was moving here and there. Each time, the child’s body also wobbled perilously, before she eventually lost her balance completely.

Zhuge Un hurriedly rushed toward the child.

“L-Little girl, be careful!”

Splash!

Losing her balance in an instant, the child was dragged straight into the waters of Lake Dongting. Just as the startled Zhuge Yeon and Zhuge Un ran toward the spot and were about to jump into the water.

“Phew!”

Making a loud sound, the child suddenly popped her head out.

Then, seeing the two of them approaching with “Huh?” expressions, she scratched her head as if embarrassed.

“Hehehe, I failed.”

“A-Are you alright?”

“Yes! So-mi is fine. I learned how to swim from my dad. Though he scolded me a lot…….”

Crawling out of the water, Dan So-mi turned her head. Her face was pale, perhaps because she recalled the time when she was learning to swim.

Because she was told she must learn to swim to get on a boat, she had learned it reluctantly, but she had never imagined he would make her do it so harshly that it almost killed her.

Squeeze!

Stepping out of the water, Dan So-mi wrung her clothes and shook her hair. She then pulled out the basket that was half-submerged in the water and carried it over with a grunt.

Inside, a considerable number of fish were flopping around.

“Y-You caught an incredible amount.”

“Eh? I didn’t catch that many today.”

“Are you serious!?”

“Yes!”

Zhuge Un was astonished.

In the basket, he saw easily over twenty fish. Most of them were about the size of a palm, and larger ones could be seen here and there.

And yet, she said she didn’t catch many?

To Zhuge Un, who caught around ten fish at most after fishing all day long, it was unbelievable.

“For someone so…… young, you are amazing.”

“My dad says that too. That’s why no one wants to go fishing with So-mi. How boring.”

Well, of course.

Would a full-grown adult want to do it if they caught less than a young child?

There was such a thing as saving face.

Zhuge Un smiled awkwardly as he looked at the child, who puffed out both of her cheeks to express her dissatisfaction. He, too, could not bring himself to tell her the truth.

At that moment, Dan So-mi grinned and spoke.

“By the way, did you come to So-mi’s house?”

At the word ‘house,’ Zhuge Un tilted his head.

Wondering since he had not heard that there was a house nearby.

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