chapter 295

Even If You Cut One, Two Will Grow (2)

Su-wol stared at Lee Gwak for a moment.

A hesitant glint appeared on her face. After a moment of conflict, she finally spoke.

“The Black Merchant lord is Hyo-woong.”

“Hyo-woong?”

“Yes! When the White Light Sect was thriving, he built his forces under their shadow, and when they disappeared, he began to reveal his ambitions. The When Light Sect was both an umbrella and a shackle that protected the Black Market. Because of that, he had no choice but to keep a low profile.”

“So you’re saying the shackle was removed with the demise of the White Light Sect?”

“Exactly. And it’s not just the Black Market. The Green Heaven Association, the Silver River Sect, the Endless Demon Valley—they’re all the same. With the disappearance of the White Light Sect and the Zealous Justice Clan, the shackles that bound them were also broken.”

Lee Gwak frowned.

Except for the Green Heaven Association, all the sects Su-wol mentioned were names he was hearing for the first time.

Reading his thoughts, Su-wol added an explanation.

“Except for the Green Heaven Association, they are all secretly connected to the Zealous Justice Clan or the White Light Sect. These sects were created for special purposes.”

“Special purposes?”

“They were created to do the dirty work that the Zealous Justice Clan or the White Light Sect couldn’t openly do.”

“Not exactly noble intentions, then.”

“If it were noble, they wouldn’t have hidden them so thoroughly.  At any rate, these sects grew their influence while taking on tasks the two larger sects couldn’t openly do. There were no problems when those two sects were intact, but now all mechanisms to keep them in check are gone. This is where the leader of the Jade Heaven Alliance, Ja Hong-cheon, miscalculated.”

“……”

“He believed that if he could eliminate all nine sects except for the Jade Heaven Alliance, he could control the order of the entire Jianghu.  Unfortunately, the world doesn’t work that way. The Zealous Justice Clan and the White Light Sect have disappeared, but the forces that existed under their umbrella are still intact, and they’ve even taken advantage of the chaos to expand and assert their presence.  Even if the Seven Sects are completely wiped out, the situation will not change. New sects will undoubtedly arise to fill the void.

The Jianghu was far too vast for a single power to dominate completely.

No matter how immense the Jade Heaven Alliance’s power was, it was impossible to control the entire Jianghu alone.  Even now, in places beyond the reach of the alliance, sects like the Green Heaven Association were being formed.

“Unless he destroys the entire Jianghu, Ja Hong-cheon will never get his way. At best, he can destroy a few more of the Seven Sects, but in the end, the Jianghu will return to its original state. The Jianghu is like a weed; pull out one and two will grow in its place.

The Black Merchant Lord was a man of great ambition. But even he had to keep a low profile before the might of the White Light Sect. However, the White Light Sect was annihilated by the Jade Heaven Alliance, and the chains that bound him were all broken.

There was no one left to restrain him.

He didn’t miss the opportunity to expand his forces. Trying to do many things at once, he momentarily ran out of funds and attacked the Unsan Escort Agency, but fundamentally, their financial power was solid. They earned enormous sums by running the black market.

The Black Merchant Lord wasn’t just skilled at making money. He knew how to use his subordinates effectively, and above all, he was a master who possessed formidable martial power.

“He has greater ambition than the Lord of the White Light Sect. He aims to establish an even larger power.”

“Does he have the ability to do so?”

“More than enough—it’s overwhelming. If I had to choose the scariest person I’ve ever met, I would, without a doubt, choose him.”

The fear Su-wol felt was evident on her face. She feared the Black Merchant Lord that much.

“Can’t you leave the Black Market? Brother Jin-hwi wouldn’t want you to stay there.”

“I can’t do that.”

Su-wol shook her head.

“Why not?”

“I owe him a debt of gratitude.”

When she was wandering the world empty-handed at a young age, it was the Black Merchant Lord who took her in. If he hadn’t, she might have been sold into prostitution or died somewhere unknown.

Even if he walked a dark path, even if he was condemned by the world, Su-wol could not leave him.

Having heard everything, Lee Gwak sighed.

“Ah!”

Since she was someone Ki Jin-hwi cherished, Lee Gwak also wanted to look after Su-wol as much as possible. But since she had her personal reasons, he couldn’t persuade her further.

Lee Gwak looked at Su-wol with eyes full of concern.

“Aren’t you worried you’ll be punished for failing this mission?”

“I’ll have to bear that much. I might face some setbacks, but it won’t be beyond what I can handle. I’m still valuable to the Black Merchant Lord, so you needn’t worry about me.”

“Please take care of yourself, for brother Jin-hwi’s sake.”

“I wish you a safe journey to your destination as well. And please take care of Jin-hwi oraboni, too. Then…”

After bidding farewell, Su-wol disappeared into the darkness.

Lee Gwak stood there, silently watching her fading silhouette.

“Truly, there’s so little in this world that goes as one wishes.”

**

Perhaps because they had slept in an inn for two days, everyone’s faces were brimming with energy.

The escorts and porters prepared to depart, setting aside their grief for lost comrades. The carriages damaged in the Black Market’s attack were perfectly repaired, ensuring a smooth journey ahead.

Lee Gwak and Lee Cheong hadn’t been out for a long time and were well rested. With ample rest, Lee Cheong’s face was full of vitality.

“Being young is definitely nice. We took the same rest, yet someone is so full of energy while others look so dull.”

Chae Il-yeon looked enviously at Lee Cheong.

Indeed, her own face looked a bit pale. She briefly glanced at the sun with a resentful gaze and pulled down her straw hat to cover her face.

Seol Cheonbok smirked at Chae Il-yeon.

“Is that because of age? It’s because you drank day and night during the rest.”

Many vagrants had died in the Black Market’s attack.

Those who survived spent the rest of the time drinking to mourn the dead. As a result, some still hadn’t recovered from their hangovers.

They survived yesterday, but didn’t know what would happen today—that was the life of a vagrant. They were no different from mayflies living each day on the edge.

Chae Il-yeon was no exception.

Despite her striking beauty, she was an experienced vagrant who had spent a long time rolling around the bottom of the Jianghu. For this reason, she had accepted the fate of a vagrant.

At that moment, Nam Woo-chang approached Lee Gwak.

“Did you have a good rest?”

“Thanks to you, I rested well.”

“That’s good. Since our schedule has been delayed by a day’s rest, I plan to increase our pace. From now on, there won’t be many days to rest comfortably at inns. I hope you understand.”

“Of course.”

Lee Gwak nodded.

Nam Woo-chang’s attitude toward Lee Gwak was very cautious, indicating that he both respected and was somewhat intimidated by him.

Currently, Lee Gwak was the greatest asset of the Unsan Escort Agency.

He had to maintain a good relationship with him somehow. That’s why the leader himself had come to see him.

Returning to the carriage, Nam Woo-chang ordered the departure.

Under the command of Head Escort Go Chang-seon, the Unsan Escort Agency set off.

The journey after leaving Pingyin County was smooth.

Contrary to Nam Woo-chang’s worries, there were no further attacks.

For the first couple of days, they remained vigilant, but as nothing happened, people gradually regained their smiles.

Moreover, more people began to approach Lee Gwak.

The escorts who initially dismissed him as a mere vagrant now looked at him with awe and tried to get closer to him.

Just knowing a master like Lee Gwak would be a lifelong boast.

But Lee Gwak didn’t open up to them. He could see right through their intentions. And above all, Icheong felt uncomfortable around them.

In the end, even as they neared their destination—the Nine Dragons Clan—the escorts couldn’t exchange a word with Lee Gwak.

Lee Gwak drove his horse while chatting with Lee Cheong.

He could feel the uncomfortable gazes but didn’t care. Spending time talking with Lee Cheong was more precious than their stares.

Except for occasional interruptions by Chae Il-yeon, they spent their time together.

“Let’s rest here today.”

With only a day left to the Nine Dragons Clan, Go Chang-seon ordered them to set up camp.

Once the group stopped, the porters began setting up.

They arranged the carriages in a circle to create a barricade.  Though Lee Gwak had seen this process several times, he was still impressed by the speed and efficiency with which the makeshift fortress took shape.

Lee Gwak and Lee Cheong found a secluded spot to avoid interfering with the porters’ work.

Some porters inserted wooden planks between carriages, while others prepared meals.

The Nine Dragons Clan was a day’s distance away.

It meant that if they traveled just one more day, their hardship would be over. Naturally, their faces were full of relief.

They could worry about returning to the Unsan Escort Agency later; for now, they were grateful to have arrived safely near the Nine Dragons Clan.

At that moment, Go Chang-seon’s voice echoed through the campsite.

“Don’t let your guard down just because we’re close to our destination. We don’t know what might happen before we enter the Nine Dragons Clan, so stay alert.”

“Yes!”

“Understood.”

The escorts and porters replied in unison.

The escorts prepared for any possible attack, and the porters completed their preparations for the camp.

Dinner was, as always, pre-prepared porridge.

They poured the powdered mix stored in sacks into a large cauldron, boiled it, and soon a decent porridge was ready.

The porters distributed the porridge to everyone.

“I’m getting tired of this.”

“We’re almost there; can’t they give us proper food?”

The vagrants grumbled.

They glanced at the wagons carrying emergency rations. But the Unsan Escort Agency coldly ignored their grumbling.

The provisions were prepared for emergencies, not to be given to mere vagrants.

With the Nine Dragons Clan so close, the vagrants had served their purpose. It was unlikely anything would happen in the remaining day, and relations between the escorts and vagrants had grown even frostier.

Seol Cheon-bok shook his head, speaking bluntly.

Tsk! They’re unnecessarily greedy. They should be grateful just to be properly compensated without being discarded after use.”

Having survived for decades at the bottom of the Jianghu as a vagrant, Seol Cheon-bok never desired more than he deserved. That was one of the secrets to his survival.

Lee Gwak asked him, “Will you be returning with the Unsan Escort Agency?”

“If they hire me, I would, but do you think they’d bring the vagrants along on the return journey? Unless they’re transporting very precious cargo, the vagrants who were with us today will have to find their own way back or seek other work. That’s the life of vagrants, isn’t it?”

“Why didn’t you join an escort agency officially?”

“Is that so easy? In my youth, I wandered the Jianghu alone, full of myself. After enjoying such freedom, when I tried to join an escort agency, they wouldn’t accept me because I was old.”

“Hmm.”

“That’s how the world works. If you live recklessly without thinking in your youth, you pay the price when you’re older. Like me…”

Seol Cheon-bok gave a wry smile.

Lee Gwak looked at him silently.

The firelight cast deep shadows on Seol Cheon-bok’s wrinkled face, each line telling a story of its own.

Lee Gwak was curious about those stories but chose not to pry.

Just then, Chae Il-yeon addressed Lee Gwak.

“So, Master Lee, what will you do next?”

“What do you mean?”

“Once we reach the Nine Dragon Clan. Are you planning to enter? Someone of your skill would undoubtedly receive a warm welcome.”

Chae Il-yeon looked genuinely curious, and the other vagrants nearby shared the same expression.

Sung Jae-gyeong and Dam Myeong gazed at Lee Gwak with similar looks.

They wandered the world as mere vagrants due to limitations in their martial arts abilities, but Lee Gwak was different. With his level of skill, it was certain he would be well received even at the Nine Dragons Clan.

“I have no intention of joining the Nine Dragons Clan.”

“Huh? Why not?”

Chae Il-yeon’s eyes widened.

She had assumed that a martial artist of Lee Gwak’s caliber had accompanied the Unsan Escort Agency to join the Nine Dragons Clan.

“I have other matters to attend to.”

“What kind of matters? Are they more important than the Nine Dragons Clan?”

“They are important.”

“That doesn’t make sense.”

Chae Il-yeon looked incredulous.