Chapter 209: The False King (3)
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“This is the extent of the collection this time.”
“Mhm.”
Gok Myeong, who was scanning the documents, nodded his head.
“It has increased again.”
“At the foundation of all great undertakings in the world, there are funds. A great undertaking without secured funds is tantamount to crying out for powerless justice.”
“You are right.”
“From now on, I will raise the collection amount by five percent. I will raise it gradually, but firmly when I do, so that the higher-ups will pay attention.”
“Mhm, right.”
It was an inexplicably reluctant reaction. The scholar smiled.
“You seem to be quite frustrated.”
Gok Myeong smacked his lips.
“Taking enough time is just as important as the funds. But I can’t help feeling impatient.”
The scholar bowed his head.
“As I have told you before, power easily gained leaves no lingering regrets even if lost. The Black Dragon Manor is different from any other Unorthodox alliance that has sprung up like bamboo shoots after the rain and then disappeared. Consistency is essential to firmly establish ourselves as the core of the manor.”
“I know. But what can I do when I feel impatient even though I know?”
“Please trust me and be a little more patient. Countless petty men have collapsed so far because of a lack of patience. I believe that you, Fortress Master, are a person qualified to leave your name in the history of the Unorthodox.”
Gok Myeong let out a dry cough.
He knew that these words were meant to flatter him. But whenever he felt a sudden surge of frustration like this, his subordinate’s encouragement was quite a great source of strength.
“I suppose the result won’t change just because I’m impatient. I have no choice but to trust and wait.”
The scholar smiled.
“You are absolutely right.”
Thousand Eyes Fortress was a fairly famous information sect even within the Unorthodox.
However, that fame paradoxically proved that the Thousand Eyes Fortress’s capabilities were at an ambiguous level. Because the truly capable information groups of the Unorthodox did not have their names known to the outside world.
But the reason the Thousand Eyes Fortress was famous was not just because of its intelligence network.
It was exactly because of their funds. The Thousand Eyes Fortress was able to secure considerable financial power through illegal businesses in addition to information.
And that could soon be interpreted as meaning that the martial prowess of the Thousand Eyes Fortress was also considerable. Because there were exceptionally many people in the Unorthodox aiming for funds.
“But you must pay attention to this at least.”
Murderous intent flashed in Gok Myeong’s eyes.
“It’s okay if it’s not the top priority. However, we must not fall behind those who are worse than us.”
The scholar bowed his head.
“If there is a sect that enters the Black Dragon before our fortress, I will completely destroy their sect without anyone knowing.”
“Good.”
Gok Myeong smiled.
He was a reliable subordinate.
In fact, it had not been long since this subordinate came to him. Half a year at most? But even before a month had passed, he had made him his right-hand man.
Because he was smart. This guy had a dignity and wisdom that other subordinates lacked.
And his exceptional treatment quickly shone through.
“You worked hard today too. I’ll go first.”
“You have worked hard.”
“Ah, and.”
Gok Myeong’s eyes, looking north from the top of the ten-story building, became unusually serious.
“Our fortress is an information organization. You must not forget the reason we are in the northernmost part of Hunan Province.”
A boundary towards the North.
Gathering funds and sending them to the Black Dragon Manor was important, but as an information organization, being wary of the North was also important. This was not to look good to the Black Dragon Manor, but a task they were doing entirely under the orders of the Black Dragon Manor.
“If you see anyone even slightly suspicious, attach the ants to them unconditionally. You must never lose them.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
“Good.”
Gok Myeong, who had been looking out the window for a long time even after hearing the answer, turned his body.
‘Huu, I want to get a little drunk today. A heavy drink after a long time…’
At that moment, Gok Myeong’s eyes widened.
‘…!!’
All the hairs on his body stood on end.
His mouth began to dry out, and his lower back became damp. He couldn’t even take out the iron claws he had hidden in his sleeves.
It was a coercion.
His body reacted first just by looking at the opponent. The moment he fully recognized the opponent, even a single strand of his beard stiffened.
“Hmm.”
A voice suddenly heard.
The scholar was also startled and turned his head.
‘Gasp!’
The top floor of the ten-story building where the two were standing.
In one corner of the space where uninvited people could not enter, there was a middle-aged man sitting on a table and scanning the documents that Gok Myeong had been examining just a moment ago.
He had an antique appearance.
A perfectly equipped attire. The clothes he wore were also quite splendid. It was almost to the point where it would not be lacking to hear them called a treasure garment.
On his waist belt, he wore a pitch-black longsword that contrasted with his splendid attire. Long and of considerable thickness, the sword gave off a strong impression rather than a sharp one.
‘W-who?!’
The scholar looked at Gok Myeong with trembling eyes.
In an instant, his face turned pale.
‘An opponent that Fortress Master Gok cannot defeat!’
Gok Myeong’s face was full of extreme tension and confusion. If it had been someone he could face, he would have drawn his iron claws long ago and hacked the opponent to pieces.
‘Who is it?’
Who on earth was it that they had entered this place while avoiding the senses of an absolute peak expert like Gok Myeong?
“Amazing.”
The middle-aged man’s voice was truly pleasant to listen to.
A low bass tone that lay low. The smile cast as if it were a habit put the listener’s mind at ease.
Of course, the impressions of the two people were different.
“Are you saying that the revenue earned every month by guys who are nothing more than an information sect with a somewhat known name is this much? Heoheo, I realize anew how much we have underestimated you.”
The man looked at the ceiling and sighed.
“This is why the term armchair theory was created. I thought you were guys who would be crushed to death as soon as they were stepped on, but it turns out you weren’t common bugs, but poisonous insects?”
Poisonous insects.
It was a truly offensive expression. But neither Gok Myeong nor the scholar could easily open their mouths.
The middle-aged man, who had lowered his gaze again, carelessly threw the document he was holding.
Thud!
The two flinched without realizing it. The sound of the bundle of documents falling on the table was exceptionally overwhelming.
The middle-aged man’s eyes finally turned to Gok Myeong.
‘Gasp!!’
Gok Myeong stopped breathing for a moment.
Flash! Flash!
The gleam in the eyes of the middle-aged man looking at him was so terrifying that it could not be described in words.
They were clear eyes with distinct black and white. Outwardly, they were certainly like that.
However, the incredibly ferocious ambition dwelling within those clear eyes gifted ten thousand pounds of pressure to the one facing them.
‘…A monster.’
The tips of Gok Myeong’s fingers trembled.
‘This person is a monster!’
He had not emitted inner ki, nor had he drawn his sword to exercise his skills.
He could tell just from his gaze. That the opponent was an extremely dangerous kind. And that he had accumulated martial arts matching the ferocity he harbored.
Surprisingly, Gok Myeong saw the shadow of a living myth in the opponent’s eyes.
The shadow of the strongest person who was born as a human and had risen to the ranks of a god, more powerful than any expert he had met so far.
‘Manor Lord?!’
That’s right.
The middle-aged man was cast with a shadow similar to Yang Cheon, the strongest martial god Gok Myeong had seen.
Skill? He couldn’t even guess. Just as the inferior cannot fathom the superior, it was clear he was a monstrously strong expert, but he couldn’t tell how strong.
However, this one thing was certain.
‘This person is as dangerous as the Manor Lord!’
One of the Gods, Immortals, Emperors, and Kings, the Combat King Yang Cheon.
The danger of this nameless middle-aged man was immense enough to bring to mind that absolute existence.
It wasn’t because of his martial arts. It was because of the ambition the person himself harbored, and the unbridled ferocity ready to commit any act for the sake of that ambition.
The eyes of intuition gained while dealing with unfathomable information.
To think that such an outstanding eye for people would be displayed at a moment of such unavoidable danger.
“You are a truly interesting fellow.”
The middle-aged man, Murong Jun, smiled.
“Your guts are only this small, but the ideals you harbor are high. Up to that point, it is similar to those of guys who don’t know their place, but you have an eye for seeing people.”
“…!!”
“It’s a pity. If you had lowered your ideals and grown your boldness a little more, I would have at least once proposed you to come under me.”
He grasped the opponent’s vessel at a glance.
It was an eye far sharper and more accurate than Gok Myeong’s. In addition to his innate talent, Murong Jun’s eye, polished while breaking through the chaotic battlefield of power struggles, was already not lacking to discuss the world.
“But.”
Murong Jun turned his head to the scholar.
“With that good eye, why are you raising a fierce dog that vigilantly aims for its owner’s flesh?”
Gok Myeong was startled and looked at the scholar.
The scholar’s eyes were shaking as if there had been an earthquake. He was flustered because the opponent had seen through his purpose at a glance.
Murong Jun’s smile deepened.
“I suppose, among the various means for dreams and power, there is nothing easier than using others. And an easy path is not always wrong either.”
“…!!”
“I don’t know if our Operations Group Leader will be able to settle down successfully like you.”
Gok Myeong stuttered and opened his mouth.
“W-what is it that you want?”
“What I want.”
Murong Jun tilted his head.
“It’s certainly a pity. Asking for my purpose rather than my identity? In most cases, it is not easy to say so. This is why the environment is important. If you had met me ten years earlier, you would have grown into quite a decent talent.”
At that moment, the scholar reached out his hand towards a string hanging from the ceiling.
Murong Jun’s eyes sparkled.
Whoosh!
The scholar, who pulled the string forcefully, was startled. Only a part of the cut string was grasped in his hand before he knew it.
“On the other hand, you are completely useless. You are smart and have greed, but your face is too ambiguous. You are fundamentally an untrustworthy guy.”
In an instant, lightning blazed in Murong Jun’s two eyes.
Fear appeared on the scholar’s face.
“W-wait a minute!”
Srrk.
Without a sound of explosion or roaring, not even a cutting sound or the sound of a sword.
Just naturally.
The scholar’s body was cut into eighteen pieces and collapsed.
Srrk.
In an instant, the floor was dyed with blood.
‘Gasp!’
An unstable trembling spread throughout Gok Myeong’s body. He did not even see Murong Jun deploy his martial arts, let alone what kind of martial arts he used.
Srrng. Tak!
Murong Jun, who sheathed the longsword he had drawn without anyone knowing, smiled and asked.
“Did you ask what I wanted?”
“Y-yes, yes!”
“Heoheo, yes. You should come out humbly like that. You, I’m liking you more and more.”
Murong Jun, with his hands behind his back, took a step onto the blood rapidly spreading.
Psssss.
A nauseating smell of blood rose.
The terrifying inner qi flowing from the tips of Murong Jun’s toes evaporated all the blood that had drenched the entire floor.
It was a divine operation of inner ki that could not be believed even when seen with the eyes. Even for a person who had learned Yang-attribute inner qi, evaporating only the liquid in an instant was something they could hardly dare to attempt.
“What is your name?”
“…Gok Myeong. I am called Gok Myeong.”
“Right, Fortress Master Gok.”
A cold smile was cast on Murong Jun’s face.
“There is a tiger that I want to tear into two pieces at once if I follow my heart. He hasn’t lived that long, but his craftiness surpasses that of a several-hundred-year-old nine-tailed fox.”
“Y-yes, yes?”
“He is a guy I must definitely catch someday, but this time I feel like I need to sharpen my fangs on him. Because I’m also riding on that tiger’s back.”
“…?!”
“So I’m saying, it seems I need to use this residence for a while.”
“P-please do so.”
“And one more thing.”
A terrifying murderous intent raged over Murong Jun’s smiling face.
“Do you know exactly where the place Yang Cheon has coiled up is?”