Chapter 352: Chapter 352

“…….”

“Ugh…….”

Even though they were returning toward the Hunan Dan Family, Zhuge Yeon and Gwon Mu-jin’s mood was not that great. Dan Woo-hyun’s expression as he walked ahead was filled with displeasure about something.

Zhuge Yeon narrowed down a few reasons for it.

However, there was no need to even think.

‘‘It is because we obtained nothing.’’

There was a purpose to this trip to Hubei.

One was to retrieve the goods stolen by the Green Forest.

Second was to plunder everything the Green Forest possessed.

Since they were the world-renowned Green Forest, they must have amassed a lot of wealth.

Dan Woo-hyun’s purpose lay there, but before they knew it, the Green Forest had burned down and disappeared, and they could not retrieve the lost goods either.

Furthermore, they had painfully gotten involved in a fight, and even from that, they did not gain a single silver coin, so it was natural that Dan Woo-hyun’s mood was unpleasant.

“It is not like that.”

“I didn’t say anything, though?”

At the words that suddenly drifted over, Zhuge Yeon replied with a broad smile. He must have read her true feelings revealed on her face, but since nothing was uttered aloud, she could just deny it.

Zhuge Yeon was not one to reveal things exactly as they were like Jang Sam-tae.

Dan Woo-hyun frowned.

Looking at Zhuge Yeon sticking out her tongue, he looked needlessly annoyed. However, without uttering any more words, he hastened his steps.

“By the way, Lord. About the two experts who held back Seon-jin.”

“Yes.”

“Do you really think they are on the same level as the seniors?”

At Gwon Mu-jin’s question, Dan Woo-hyun stroked his chin with a hum. Drawing the picture in his mind once again, he soon shook his head.

“In terms of internal energy, they are undoubtedly similar. However, they are still far from being compared to those two.”

“…….”

At that single remark, Gwon Mu-jin gasped.

Dan Woo-hyun’s words ultimately meant that although their internal energy level was similar, they had many shortcomings.

In the end, it meant they were comparable to the Five Sovereigns, so he could not hide his astonishment.

“If there are more such people…… the Central Plains wuxia world is in a very big crisis.”

Zhuge Yeon shook her head.

The situation was already difficult enough.

The Martial Sovereign Castle and the Murim Alliance were destroyed, and the Blood Heaven was established in their place.

However, if there were more people whom even Master Seon-jin, who could be called a pillar of the orthodox wuxia world, could not handle, then there was practically no hope for the orthodox wuxia world.

She stiffened her face with a serious expression.

“There will be more.”

“Yes?”

“Pardon?”

“More powerful ones, that is.”

Dan Woo-hyun’s thoughts were extremely simple.

If there were really only two people of Yeong-pung and Ma-cheol’s caliber, they wouldn’t have moved just to hold back Seon-jin alone.

Ultimately, it was the same as saying there were others who were similar to or even more great than those two.

Dan Woo-hyun looked toward the east.

In the direction he was looking lay Henan.

Nothing could be seen now, but in Dan Woo-hyun’s eyes, it was as if a large pavilion where the flag of the Blood Heaven fluttered was visible.

He fell into thought for a moment.

Watching that sight, Zhuge Yeon and Gwon Mu-jin swallowed hard.

An ominous thought occurred to them that perhaps he was planning to move right now to destroy the Blood Heaven.

It was even more so because they felt that this man could easily do it.

However, soon turning his gaze, Dan Woo-hyun looked south.

The place where the Hunan Dan Family was located.

After staring at that place for a long time, he shook his head.

“Le… Let us return quickly!”

“Th… That is right, Lord. We must hurry back and take care of So-mi.”

“…….”

Perhaps due to their ominous feelings, Zhuge Yeon and Gwon Mu-jin urged Dan Woo-hyun.

They had absolutely no desire to head toward a hellish place where there might be even more experts comparable to the Five Sovereigns.

* * *

The Hunan Dan Family.

Inside, Jang Sam-tae was facing off against the white tiger.

The white tiger glared intently at Jang Sam-tae, who was trying to flee, staying alert so it could catch him at any moment.

When he stealthily tried to move to the right, the white tiger also looked that way and tried to step.

What on earth was this meaningless fight, which had already lasted for fifteen minutes, for?

“Ah, get out of the way!”

Grrr-!

A deer was slung over Jang Sam-tae’s shoulder. Judging by the way it was bitten to death, it appeared to have been caught by a beast, not a human.

Therefore, it was clear that the white tiger had caught it to eat, but bringing it to the Hunan Dan Family without putting it in its mouth was a mistake.

Even without that, they had no proper dinner for today, and since the white tiger brought side dishes just in time, it was a situation where Jang Sam-tae could shout for joy.

However, the white tiger did not like that at all.

It had hunted it with great effort, but Jang Sam-tae was taking all of it without even giving it a single leg.

“I told you, if you eat this, So-mi won’t have anything to eat today!”

Grrr-!

The white tiger did not back down.

Why would it hunt and bring food back instead of leaving it? It was because the food Jang Sam-tae usually gave was poor. Whether human or beast, one had to be full to feel like living, but until now, the white tiger had never eaten its fill.

It was also because it could not go out to hunt while guarding Dan So-mi.

Therefore, it did not back down easily this time.

“Fine! I get it! Is this enough?”

In the end, Jang Sam-tae, who raised both hands, sliced off a bit of the belly fat and threw the chunk of meat in front of the white tiger. The piece that plopped down was barely the size of an adult’s palm.

Considering the white tiger’s size, it was an amount that wouldn’t even count as a snack.

Perhaps annoyed, the white tiger growled lowly.

This time, it sounded sharper than before.

Startled by that sound which made his whole body shiver, Jang Sam-tae hurriedly threw himself.

Thud!

Before he knew it, the white tiger’s claws flew and struck the ground where Jang Sam-tae had been standing.

Just looking at the deeply dug pit, it was clear that the moment he got struck wrongly, he would go straight to the grave.

Cold sweat trickled down Jang Sam-tae’s face.

“Are you crazy?!”

Grrr-!

The white tiger glared at Jang Sam-tae with a fierce gaze.

In the past, it was an attack he wouldn’t have even been able to dodge, but now he was fleeing leisurely and even shouting back, which it did not like.

The angered white tiger rushed in even faster.

“You crazy tiger-!”

Jang Sam-tae shrieked and hopped around to dodge the white tiger.

Conversely, watching that sight, Sa Do-hak clicked his tongue. Whether Dan Woo-hyun was here or not, it was a place where there wasn’t a single quiet day.

And Jang Sam-tae was the source of most of that commotion.

Sa Do-hak picked his ear as if it were noisy.

“What kind of fellow fights even with a beast?”

With an expression of truly not understanding, Sa Do-hak shook his head. Having no one to fight and bickering with a beast was not a good sight.

“Haha, what does it matter? Isn’t it lively and good?”

Namgung Cheon gave a hearty laugh as he watched the scene. Jang Sam-tae’s movements as he swiftly unfolded lightness art to flee were already resembling the white tiger and the white cat.

Also, perhaps because he learned the Shadowless Steps, even his traces barely remained, so he wondered if handing him a sword hilt would make him better than most assassins.

There would be no one whose skills were increasing that rapidly inside this Hunan Dan Family.

‘Maybe that fellow will really end up leading the wuxia world.’

Namgung Cheon shook his head as he had an absurd thought. It was because the moment such a thing happened, the future of the wuxia world would be truly worrying.

“Don’t think of useless things. Just imagining it makes me want to vomit.”

“Hohoho, I didn’t think of anything.”

“I can tell just by looking at your face.”

Sa Do-hak looked at Jang Sam-tae with a fed-up expression.

Imagine a fellow like that becoming one of the Five Sovereigns. There would be no other headache as big as that.

“Whatever is fine, but is it alright for us to be this leisurely?”

At that time, Juk Mu-seong approached and asked.

Perhaps because he had been working outside all day, he was covered in dirt and dust here and there. As he patted his clothes, a thick cloud of dust rose.

When Namgung Cheon and Sa Do-hak waved their hands, a light wind blew and swept the dust elsewhere.

“You’re kicking up dust, you rascal! What are you doing?”

“I came back from working, so isn’t it natural! More than that, I am asking if it is really alright to stay like this!”

“Then what? Shall we play Go?”

Sa Do-hak looked at Juk Mu-seong with a crooked gaze.

What they did these days was nothing but playing like immortals.

Because the Golden Trade Union and the inn committed crimes, they were confiscated and disappeared, and Yoon Gong and Ja Hak-sang died.

Also, since the power of the Hunan Dan Family was growing day by day, the crime rate had also decreased significantly.

To the point where they didn’t even need to wear masks and play the role of the Gentleman’s Sword.

In this situation, the only thing to do would be to spend the day idling around.

However, Juk Mu-seong had an expression of not liking it at all.

“Since the Martial Sovereign Castle and the Murim Alliance collapsed, next will be the Heavenly Way Association or the Demonic Cult. I heard those bastards are slowly stretching their hands to the outer forces as well.”

Zhuge Wun was constantly observing the movements of the Blood Heaven.

Being next to him, various stories naturally came in.

Although they chose seclusion, they were in a situation where the friends and comrades of the forces they had belonged to might die, yet Namgung Cheon and Sa Do-hak were peaceful.

In Juk Mu-seong’s eyes, this was not the time to be playing, laughing, and chatting.

It was a situation where it wouldn’t be enough even if they moved right away.

For the sake of the revenge Juk Mu-seong himself harbored.

“I heard.”

“Then we must also move……!”

“Look here, Mu-seong……. I know you are angry because you lost the Martial Sovereign Castle. I also have lost quite a lot, after all.”

Frowning, Juk Mu-seong glared at Namgung Cheon.

There were still many words he wanted to utter, but in truth, the one who lost the most among the three was Namgung Cheon.

His anger would not even compare to Juk Mu-seong’s.

At that moment, Namgung Cheon slightly lifted the sword he had placed on one side of the veranda.

With a metallic click, his aura flowed.

“If I followed my thoughts, I’d want to kill them all. Wouldn’t that be so? Since martial artists originally find the meaning of life in killing and seizing.”

“…….”

“Hmph.”

Namgung Cheon’s words were absolutely not wrong.

Holding a sword and discussing righteousness.

Holding a sword and discussing chivalry.

Even if they brought up justice to eradicate evil and wielded the sword, and even if they established a justification to take revenge, there was no doubt that they were taking the lives of others.

Ultimately, from the moment one decided to live as a martial artist, life began and ended with taking away lives.

“Though I am old, I can still hold a sword.”

He could hold a sword and run out for revenge at any time.

However, Namgung Cheon closed his eyes tightly.

The faces of many people flickered through his mind. It was the same for Sa Do-hak, but he did not say anything and just watched.

“So enjoy this moment. For the time when we will hold our swords for the last time.”

Namgung Cheon’s eyes slowly settled.

Harboring the rising killing intent in his heart, he would never forget.

Yet, he did not reveal it either.

When the time comes.

Even if this life ends, he would surely…… repay everything.

Because such a strong will was felt, Juk Mu-seong could no longer say anything.

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