Chapter 597: Side Story 97

Chapter side_97

“Uha, uhahaha!”

The carriage began to move ruthlessly once again.

Although the road was good, the reality was that it could not help but rattle because the speed was so fast. Jin Tae-gong, who was sitting on the driver’s seat, held onto the seat tightly with a pale face, and the people inside also frowned at the shaking.

However, Jang Sam-tae, who was actually driving the carriage, did not care in the slightest. Having had something pleasant happen, he kept bursting into laughter with a brighter and more refreshed expression than ever.

“That fellow, he came back late yesterday, so he must have had something good happen… Haha.”

“He is a rotten bastard, truly. While these elders were waiting anxiously, he spent a good time outside?”

“…It seemed the grass field was nice.”

At the sarcastic words of Namgung Cheon, Sado Hak, and Bi Cheon-ung, Mae-hyang’s face inside the carriage turned bright red. They had entered the inn at the crack of dawn, and both of their collars and hair were disheveled, and wild grass was stuck all over their bodies.

It was a situation where anyone could tell what they had done.

Unable to raise her head, Mae-hyang grit her teeth and rushed to the driver’s seat.

Soon, she roughly slapped the back of Jang Sam-tae’s head.

“Ack?!”

“Moderate yourself, you human?! The kids are here too!”

Jang Sam-tae glared sharply at Mae-hyang as she went back inside the carriage, huffing and puffing. At that moment, Mae-hyang, perhaps noticing his gaze, raised her fist with an expression that said, ‘What are you going to do about it?’

“Damn it… look closely too. This is what happens when you get married.”

“…From what I saw, you fully deserved to be hit.”

“Hey! If I say it is, then it is, you accept it, punk. You are below me, aren’t you? I’m above!”

“Y… Yes… I understand.”

Jin Tae-gong, quietly bowing his head, let out a sigh of relief. Although Jang Sam-tae was an oddball, he was easier to deal with than the others, and thus he knew how fortunate he was to be with him now.

Perhaps Geum Ji-ran, by this time, felt like she would rather jump out of the carriage.

Knowing that, no matter how crazy Jang Sam-tae acted, he stayed close to his side.

“…”

“Ahem!”

Jeok Mu-seong, who was lying soundly in the corner of the carriage, glanced at Geum Ji-ran guarding his side and cleared his throat. He frowned deeply, wondering what was so displeasing.

In his heart, he wanted to stand up right away and beat her to death.

However, since Dan Woo-hyun was beside him and others were holding him back, he could only frown.

“I… was not defeated!”

“Yes? Ah… yes, indeed.”

It was clear from Geum Ji-ran’s expression that she had no idea what he was talking about. However, since it was the word of Jeok Mu-seong, one of the Five Emperors, she could not say she didn’t know, could she?

She could only nod and tolerate his crankiness.

“I mean I wasn’t defeated by the likes of the Heaven and Earth Sect!”

“Ah… I, I see. A-As expected of one of the Five Emperors under heaven.”

“Hmph!”

Even when she praised him with a thumbs-up, Jeok Mu-seong snorted. Since she had no idea what he was trying to say, the sight of him snorting and turning his head away was truly bizarre.

“Do not mind him. He is just acting like that because he is old, hahaha.”

At that sight, Namgung Cheon said with a hearty laugh.

He knew he was just venting his anger for no reason.

Since he had lost everything in an instant, how could he feel otherwise? Since this was a situation that would never have happened without the Heaven and Earth Sect, Jeok Mu-seong’s feelings toward her could never be good.

Unable to express it properly, he was acting like a sulking child.

“Hmph! Do not talk nonsense, old man. More importantly, Family Head Dan! When on earth do you plan to heal me?”

Jeok Mu-seong looked at Dan Woo-hyun with a rather reluctant expression. Although his weakened body could recover by eating meals and building up his strength, unblocking his blocked blood points was impossible without Dan Woo-hyun’s help.

Otherwise, he might have to live forever as a body that could not use martial arts at all.

Perhaps that weighed heavily on his mind, as he urged Dan Woo-hyun.

“It doesn’t seem too bad even now.”

“Cough… Ahem! N-No, you wouldn’t say that if your own blood points were blocked. Do you know how uncomfortable it is?”

“Blocked blood points are to be unblocked by oneself. Can you not even do that?”

At Dan Woo-hyun’s words, which were no different from a plain truth, Jeok Mu-seong was lost for words. But he too had made countless efforts to unblock his blocked blood points.

Was that an easy thing to do?

If he could have done it, things would not have come to this.

Thus, Jeok Mu-seong looked at Dan Woo-hyun with a resentful gaze.

“Do not worry. I will release it when the time comes… Even if I release it now, you only intend to waste your strength on useless things.”

“Ugh…”

At Dan Woo-hyun’s words, Jeok Mu-seong flinched and swallowed a groan.

The moment his blood points were released, he intended to return to Shanxi and slaughter all the bastards who had betrayed him in the Martial Sovereign Castle.

Although he already knew that Gwon Hyeong-tae was dead, his anger would not be appeased by just one such fellow.

He felt his anger would only be relieved by taking the heads of the bastards who had conspired in this matter, and completely wiping out their families as well.

Thus, he urged Dan Woo-hyun even more.

Had he already noticed?

Calming his boiling killing intent without realizing it, he took a deep breath. He realized once again that it was impossible to use that man.

And at that moment.

Perhaps to change the atmosphere, Namgung So-hye joined the conversation. Although she spoke in a bright voice, she glanced at Jeok Mu-seong as if she were trying to change the somber atmosphere somehow.

“Anyway, we are in Anhui now. Oh… how tedious. I don’t think I’ll ever go sightseeing again.”

As her words sounded gentle, Namgung Cheon, understanding her intent, also nodded. Stroking his beard, he let out a laugh and nodded.

“Hahaha. Since it has been a long time in Anhui, enjoy it to your heart’s content.”

“Is there anything… to enjoy?”

Namgung So-hye sighed, thinking of home for a moment.

Enjoying…

Could she enjoy it among those family members?

The moment she recalled the faces of her father and brother, she frowned fiercely like a person thinking of something disgusting. It was even more so because the actions they would display were already vivid in her mind.

“I think it will be really fun!”

Along with that, Dan So-mi smiled brightly and looked at Dan Woo-hyun. Perhaps because of her eyes and expression, which seemed to ask if he was looking forward to it, Dan Woo-hyun also smiled gently and nodded for her.

“Yes, it will be fun.”

Now, it was time to let go of the woman he had been with for the longest time. The bond he had held onto for a long thousand years, and the image of the woman he still could not forget.

Thinking about that quietly, he turned his eyes.

“If we go there, sister will show you many good places.”

“Great. It will be even more fun to go with the children!”

In Dan Woo-hyun’s eyes, the figure of Namgung So-hye chatting cozily with Dan So-mi came into view. Although she was clearly completely different from Nam Ju-ryeon, perhaps because she inherited that bloodline, there were times when her image seemed to overlap.

Just like right now.

He smiled without realizing it and turned his gaze out the window.

* * *

“What… did you say?”

“The Martial Sovereign Castle has collapsed.”

Zhuge Un asked back, wondering if his ears had gone wrong. However, when the same words came out of the man’s mouth, he turned his head without realizing it and looked at Zhuge Yeon.

She also pinched the bridge of her nose, as if she had a headache.

“Why… did it turn out like that?”

Hearing the words alone, it was a situation that could not actually be understood.

The Martial Sovereign Castle was not just any place, but one that took charge of one pillar of the orthodox, unorthodox, and demonic factions. In a situation where the existence of the Five Emperors had already disappeared from the orthodox faction and the Demonic Cult, it was ruled solely by Jeok Mu-seong, one of the Five Emperors, to the point that people even said it was currently the strongest organization in the Central Plains.

But does it make sense that it collapsed so suddenly?

Had Jeok Mu-seong gone mad?

Or were the high-ranking officials of the Martial Sovereign Castle running wild?

Whichever it was, the fact remained that it was incomprehensible.

“Well… it turns out that the Martial Sovereign Castle side joined hands with the Heaven and Earth Sect to drag Jeok Mu-seong down.”

“Ha…?”

“Haha, does that make any sense?”

Since he only heard words that made no sense no matter how much he listened, even the great Zhuge Un wore an absurd expression. As mentioned earlier, the unorthodox faction’s current status was something they could be proud of as the best in the Central Plains, yet they joined hands with mere heretics to drag Jeok Mu-seong down?

Since it was something that should never happen if they had brains, he had no words when told that such a thing had actually occurred.

“Sigh… Indeed, it seems it ran better when Yeom Gyeong-baek or Ma Cheol-gwon were around.”

Zhuge Un held his throbbing head and let out a sigh. Because such brainless bastards gathered together, they were called the unorthodox faction.

Even the Heaven and Earth Sect, of all things?

Wasn’t that place surely the one that had crossed paths with Dan Woo-hyun?

“…?”

“Ah…?”

As Zhuge Un thought that and looked at his daughter, she also opened her eyes wide as if she had recalled something. It was because they had only heard that the Martial Sovereign Castle had collapsed, but had no idea who did it.

However, a few figures had already come to both of their minds.

Because it wouldn’t make sense otherwise.

“Just… who… collapsed the Martial Sovereign Castle?”

“I heard it was one person. But… doesn’t that make no sense no matter how much you think about it? It is the great Martial Sovereign Castle…”

“T-That is true…”

At the mention of one person, someone instantly came to mind. Although everyone said it was nonsense, from the perspective of Zhuge Un and Zhuge Yeon, only one person who could do such a thing came to mind.

He had friction with the Heaven and Earth Sect, and in the end, he caused trouble!

Zhuge Un’s head began to throb.

The disappearance of the Martial Sovereign Castle was no different from the history of the unorthodox faction being overturned. Countless people would raise their swords to seize power and strength, and it was as clear as day that the sparks would fly toward the orthodox faction.

Why on earth did such a thing have to happen now!

Zhuge Un felt like crying.

“Send troops toward Shanxi, plant spies, and have them submit a detailed report. The collapse of the Martial Sovereign Castle means… it would not be strange for the Great Orthodox-Unorthodox War to break out at any moment.”

“Y-Yes, I understand.”

The times were changing.

Zhuge Un was realizing that flow.

Those who wished for the Five Emperors under heaven to step down and wanted to become the new Five Emperors would raise their swords and show off their skills. In that process, whether wanted or not, the blood of countless people would flow.

Zhuge Un closed his eyes tightly.

“Is he… trying to change the era?”

With the collapse of the Martial Sovereign Castle, the Central Plains Murim would be shaken. It was no different from saying that a considerable blood wind would blow.

Did Dan Woo-hyun move with that in mind?

It was truly a mystery.

“Why do you think so deeply about it? Does Family Head Dan seem like a person who lives with such thoughts?”

“…”

“He just cleared it away because it was in his way. Only the bastards who suffered were unlucky. Isn’t that so?”

At his daughter’s subsequent words, Zhuge Un broke into a cold sweat. He tried hard to attribute meaning to Dan Woo-hyun’s actions, but even that did not go as planned.

Zhuge Un let out a long sigh, going ‘haah’.

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