Chapter 348: Winner of the Secret Strife (2)
Kaifeng’s Constant Peace Tower was a tavern that was neither that big nor famous.
Furthermore, it was a place where almost no customers visited unless they were outsiders. That was understandable, as it rested for more than half a month, so who would purposefully seek out such a place.
Thanks to that, there was a time when miscellaneous rumors about Constant Peace Tower did not cease. There were eerie rumors that it was a hideout for assassins or a base for a Black Path gang, and there were also talks that it was a shop run as a hobby by a retired wealthy man.
Naturally, out of curiosity, people who snooped around Constant Peace Tower appeared. And most of them went missing or returned as cripples. That was the same for both commoners and martial artists.
People were steeped in fear and reported this fact to the government office, but the government office remained silent. Let alone taking measures regarding Constant Peace Tower, they did not even try to investigate it in the first place.
Eventually, people lost interest in Constant Peace Tower. Because in the first place, it wasn’t like monsters came out of Constant Peace Tower or anything, and only those who snooped around pointlessly suffered harm.
Moreover, the boisterous rumors died down abnormally quickly. In other words, someone had intentionally silenced the rumors.
Like that, Constant Peace Tower was forgotten from the memories of the people of Kaifeng. Since no one tried to know about it, it was bound to naturally become so.
‘Hmm.’
Murong Jun’s eyes, looking at Constant Peace Tower in the darkness, were deeply sunk.
‘Peculiar.’
The location of Constant Peace Tower was truly peculiar.
A tavern is a place that sells alcohol and food. To do business, it naturally had to be in a marketplace, a highly visible place.
However, Constant Peace Tower was not like that. It was not an extremely secretive place, but it was not located in a place with a good commercial spot either.
‘It is a good place to avoid outside gazes. It’s not secretive, but it’s a place that won’t remain in one’s memory even if one happens to pass by.’
The corners of Murong Jun’s mouth went up.
‘Interesting. It is certain that they built it here intentionally.’
There was another reason why he was so certain.
‘Quite something.’
In every corner of Constant Peace Tower, countless masters were hiding. Their number reached fifty.
Considering the size of Constant Peace Tower, it could be seen as not that many. However, what was important was the individual martial prowess.
‘Fifty peak masters? And not just half-baked masters, but each and every one of them a match for a hundred?’
Murong Jun inwardly clicked his tongue.
It was more than the Clan Head-level guards of the Six Great Clans. Even among those called peak masters, there were levels, and these were all people who were fully ripened to the limit and capable of playing a role beyond their own capacity in any battle.
‘Hmm.’
Murong Jun noticed another peculiar point.
‘Heat Yang Art?’
They hid it as much as they could, but Murong Jun’s sharp qi-sensing could tell that the hiders had all learned martial arts of extreme yang.
Due to the characteristics of the martial art, the Heat Yang Art is not suitable for stealth. The fact that they killed their presence to this extent despite that meant their skills were that outstanding.
‘Heat Yang Art… If so?’
A subtle murderous intent settled in Murong Jun’s eyes.
‘Are these guys the ones belonging to the Divine Fire Cult?’
Power naturally entered his fist.
‘……’
Murong Jun quietly controlled his breathing. For a moment, anger surged up, but he struggled to regain his calm.
‘He is being escorted by bastards from the outer-territorial region… And a Provincial Military Commander at that.’
The problem was this.
‘Is it really an escort?’
That was right.
Such a question from Murong Jun was due to the fact that the movements of the hiders were somewhat freewheeling.
Whether it was the Central Plains Murim or the outer-territorial region, escorts were all the same. If one was escorting while hiding their presence, they should sit in a place easy to watch all directions and not move. That was the basic.
However, they were different. They hid their presence, but they were constantly moving inside and outside the tavern.
That was definitely not the movement of an escort.
‘If so…’
Murong Jun’s eyes deepened.
‘This is worth risking an adventure.’
It was an intuition before logic.
Paak!
Murong Jun stepped onto the roof of Constant Peace Tower in a single breath.
Even if there were fifty masters, the gap between Murong Jun and them was impossibly far. He didn’t know if they formed a formation and attacked, but if he made up his mind and moved, deceiving their eyes was not impossible.
Hwoooong.
Fortunately, the night wind was still cold, and the wind speed was quite strong.
The sound of that wind helped Murong Jun’s movement. He carefully entered the window of the highest floor.
Whoosh!
The wind that came through the window shook the candlelight.
An elderly man with a sturdy physique, who was sitting in front of the table examining documents, spoke in a calm voice.
“The wind is cold. As if a ghost had entered.”
His voice was hoarse.
Seeing the long smoking pipe placed on one side of the table, it seemed he had smoked tobacco for quite a long period. However, thanks to that thick and hoarse voice, a unique dignity seemed to be added.
The elderly man looked around the inside of the room.
“I can’t see it, but somehow I feel like I’m not the only one here. It feels peculiar.”
It was amazing tact.
Even though he hadn’t learned internal energy, his tact was quick and his senses were outstanding. Could it be called the intuition of a general who had lived his whole life on fierce battlefields.
Whether it was an actual battlefield or a battlefield of political strife, Yeo Sang-do, the Provincial Military Commander of Henan, was a person who had always seized victory.
The senses of a person who has received countless life threats. Detecting the breath of a threat was a survival instinct that could be acquired even if one was not an internal energy master.
Yeo Sang-do, who had been quietly looking around, closed the window.
He spoke in a calm voice.
“I don’t know who you are, but this is a well-soundproofed place. Stop playing ghost and reveal yourself.”
Slide.
In an instant, Murong Jun appeared from a shadowed corner.
Yeo Sang-do’s eyes widened slightly.
“You are?”
“It has been a while, Lord Yeo.”
“…Huh!”
Surprisingly, the two of them knew each other.
Before Yeo Sang-do came as the Provincial Military Commander of Henan Province, he once took charge of the affairs of Hunan. That was the time when Yeo Sang-do and Murong Jun shared a few glasses of alcohol.
A not-so-deep connection from over ten years ago. A person who had not exchanged a single contact in the meantime had secretly come looking for him like this.
“How did you know this place…?!”
“Please sit down first.”
Murong Jun waved his hand.
Woooong.
An invisible curtain of qi perfectly covered Murong Jun’s presence.
It was an art that consumed a considerable amount of internal energy. However, it was at a level where there would be no problem in having a conversation.
Yeo Sang-do, who quietly looked at Murong Jun, sat on the chair.
He was surprised, but even so, he was calm. He didn’t seem greatly tense, nor did he seem to look down on the opponent.
It was an aspect worthy of the supreme commander in charge of the military administration of a province. He would be composed even if lightning fell right in front of his eyes.
Yeo Sang-do quietly looked at Murong Jun.
‘Hmm.’
Murong Jun’s shaded face looked strangely eerie.
However, there was no killing intent in it. At least it didn’t seem like he came to kill him.
“You came knowing I was here.”
“Of course.”
“You couldn’t have messed with the government’s intelligence organization, so you must have used a Jianghu information organization.”
“That’s right.”
“It’s a highly dangerous act that could violate the Non-Interference Treaty between the Government and Murim. You know that, right?”
“There’s no way I wouldn’t know.”
“In other words, you took that much risk to find me, and furthermore, you came looking for me.”
Yeo Sang-do tilted his head.
“The you I know is not a person to commit such a highly dangerous act.”
“……”
“It must be one of two. Either a collective action, or an urgent matter has broken out to the point where you have to overdo it like this. I think it’s probably the former.”
It was a terrifying discernment.
Murong Jun couldn’t help but admire Yeo Sang-do’s brain anew. Just from the fact that the Head of the Murong Clan had secretly come looking for him, he inferred that far.
It was the reason why a person in charge of the military administration of a province could only be a monster. One needed to have this level of brain and sense to be a Provincial Military Commander.
Yeo Sang-do’s eyes became sharp.
“If you can’t convince me, I don’t know about the Jianghu, but the Murong Clan will suffer quite a big hardship.”
It was a terrifying threat.
This was absolutely not just empty words. When one becomes a Provincial Military Commander, they can annihilate even the most soaring and crawling Murim sects.
It’s just that they can’t attempt it easily due to relationships, political controversies, and the risk of war breaking out between the government and Murim. A Provincial Military Commander was that powerful a person of authority.
Murong Jun spoke.
“It’s presumptuous of me, but I will also say a word.”
“……”
“If by any chance, Lord Yeo is using the masters hiding in this place as escorts, your neck might fly off by my hands right now.”
He responded to a strong move with a strong move.
Of course, from the perspective of Yeo Sang-do who was listening, it was a truly absurd threat. No matter how big a shot in the Jianghu, daring to kill a Provincial Military Commander?
However.
“……”
Yeo Sang-do did not get angry. He didn’t show killing intent in his eyes, nor did he strike the table with his hand.
He merely looked at Murong Jun with surprised eyes.
“…As expected.”
Murong Jun smiled.
Although his eyes were cold.
“Lord Yeo is not staying here with escorts. You are being monitored. Am I wrong?”
If Yeo Sang-do didn’t become a Provincial Military Commander for nothing, Murong Jun also didn’t reign as the hegemon of Hunan for nothing.
The discernment to pierce through what each other didn’t say at once.
This is what a conversation between big shots is like. Since they have the ability to feel out the opponent’s intentions without saying them, the progress of the conversation is fast and efficient.
“That’s a relief.”
“What is?”
“If Lord Yeo had been won over by those Divine Fire Cult bastards, it would have been quite a headache then.”
“You…”
“Please speak.”
Yeo Sang-do swallowed his saliva slightly.
“You, did you know about them?”
“I didn’t know. Until recently.”
“……”
“But now that I’ve found out about those guys, I realized that now is the time to move.”
Murong Jun’s smile deepened.
“Lord Yeo, you think so too, right?”
“…Hoo.”
Yeo Sang-do let out a low sigh.
“It was very brief, but I pondered whether you were a spy sent by them.”
“That can’t be. Looking at Lord Yeo’s complexion, it seems most of the government offices in Henan Province have already been seized, so in such a situation, would they bring someone with not even a deep connection to monitor you?”
“That’s what I’m saying.”
“In other words, the situation must be seen as bad enough for Lord Yeo, who normally wouldn’t even have had such a momentary doubt, to ponder.”
“You saw it well.”
Yeo Sang-do’s eyes deepened.
“Has the Murim Alliance found out?”
“To be exact, only those who know, know. Just in case there might be a spy won over by them on our side too, we are doing everything to be fully prepared. There are not even ten people who know about the Three Cults.”
Yeo Sang-do breathed a sigh of relief.
“You did well. Very well. Seeing their ability to take action… Ah, no wait!”
“……?”
“Three Cults? Could it be, the Divine Fire Cult is not the end?”
Murong Jun’s eyes shone.
“It seems you didn’t know.”
“…!!”
“The Black Path alliance of the Jianghu, the Black Dragon Manor, was born with the support of the Evil Lust Cult, one of the Three Cults. It is said the remaining one hasn’t stepped forward yet, but we can’t be certain about that either.”
“This can’t be…”
Yeo Sang-do’s complexion turned slightly pale. Considering his usual character and boldness, he must have been extraordinarily surprised.
Murong Jun looked around.
“Please wait here for now. After I defeat the guys around first…”
“No!”
It was a small but firm voice.
Tension was cast over Yeo Sang-do’s face.
“Do not touch the masters here. Absolutely not!”
“If you’re doing this for fear that my identity might be discovered…”
“I’m neither doubting your skills, nor doing this for my safety.”
“……?”
“They are immortals. Unless you chop off their heads and tear their limbs apart to kill them, they absolutely will not die.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Literally what I said.”
Yeo Sang-do’s face distorted.
“They are monsters.”
* * *
Sizzle.
‘Hmm?’
Tang Kwan looked back.
Hwook!
Along with a strong wind, the giant man who had been swept up in the explosion was slowly getting up.
The corners of Tang Kwan’s mouth went up.
“What an interesting lump of meat.”