Chapter 363: Private Martial Union (1)
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The Celestial Martial Physique was truly an absurd body. There had never been a talent whose effects I had felt so strongly. It felt as though all my martial arts and movements had ascended by several stages.
“……I shall concede up to here.”
With Gakwon finally acknowledging defeat, the continuous battles between the Eight Exalts and me, which had suddenly heated up the martial world, came to an end. All were my victories.
Rather, the most fierce fight had been against the Blue Moon Sword Exalt, and the fights against the other Eight Exalts ended easily.
Unlike Tae-seong, who was still recuperating, the other Eight Exalts were not particularly injured anywhere. Because the difference between us was quite significant, they recognized their own weakness without needing to clash forcefully.
“For the Eight Exalts to all collapse before a single person.”
“The New Justice Association Master truly is a peerless master!”
The watching crowd chattered in excitement at the birth of a new absolute master.
“Then does the New Justice Association Master become a new member of the Eight Exalts now?”
“He defeated five of the Eight Exalts in succession; how could he enter into the same rank?”
“That is also true.”
Originally, the Eight Exalts, whose names one would not dare speak lightly of, were now being rolled around on the tongues of rumor-mongers. It was inevitable. The jianghu was inherently cruel to the defeated.
The Eight Exalts were bitter, but they seemed to have no intention of going over to argue with them. They were people who possessed at least the self-awareness that such actions would make them, as the defeated, appear even more unsightly.
And as the victor, I needed to treat them with courtesy.
“Please enter the headquarters of the New Justice Association. A banquet has been prepared.”
“A banquet? What banquet?”
Namgung Jin-hyeon asked. I smiled faintly.
“What else could it be? The New Justice Association is not so weak a place that it cannot even entertain honored guests. Naturally, it had to be prepared.”
“I appreciate the sentiment, but as a Buddhist disciple, a banquet is……”
Gakwon tried to take a step back. I immediately walked over and grabbed Gakwon’s sleeve.
“Temple cuisine has also been fully prepared. Please come without burden.”
“Ah, is that so.”
Gakwon gave an awkward smile. I understood their feelings as well. In a way, it looked as though they were being treated to a meal right after suffering a crushing defeat.
However, this banquet had been prepared even before they arrived. Whether I won or lost.
“As a man of the Green Forest, I cannot refuse free alcohol and meat.”
Of course, there were also those like Jang Gwang-yeong who walked right in without minding at all.
“Why is everyone standing there with such sullen expressions? Once we stand on the edge of a blade, victory and defeat are routine matters for a soldier anyway. Did you think we would remain the upper reaches of the Yangtze River forever?”
Jang Gwang-yeong clicked his tongue as he looked at the hesitating members of the Eight Exalts. Only then did the other Exalts seem to feel something, and they moved their steps toward the New Justice Association headquarters. I signaled with my eyes to thank Jang Gwang-yeong for guiding the people, but he did not seem to understand. Jang Gwang-yeong was simply that kind of person.
Though the other Exalts had entered hesitantly, they showed quite relaxed demeanor once they arrived at the banquet hall. It was only natural. Because I had set it up on a scale almost comparable to an Imperial Palace banquet.
“……The New Justice Association seems to have a lot of money.”
“Isn’t this too excessive?”
Namgung Jin-hyeon worried about me first. Even though the Namgung Clan belonged to the New Justice Association, they did not know that we had joined hands with the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company.
Because the alliance between our headquarters and the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company was a top-secret matter, it had not been made known to the outside.
“It is fine. We have more leeway than you might think.”
“If so, that is fortunate, but……”
Namgung Jin-hyeon did not withdraw his worried gaze. It seemed he thought I was putting on airs.
However, sharing profits with the Heaven’s Gift Merchant Company, I could be said to be the richest person in the entire Central Plains right now.
“Fine liquor. Top grade.”
Jang Gwang-yeong had already taken a seat and was pouring liquor straight down his throat. As Jang Gwang-yeong drank first like that, the other people also sat down and began to eat.
“The Association Master is certainly good at this sort of thing. Unlike a typical martial artist.”
“Isn’t he originally a merchant, not a martial artist?”
“Ah, was that so?”
“Does that matter?”
Because the Eight Exalts each had different ideologies and sects, there would not have been many occasions for them to gather like this. Since each of them was a prominent heavyweight, sitting together in one place like this was something unimaginable if not for me.
“Now that I think of it, didn’t your son hold a wedding recently?”
“Haha. How did you know that?”
“Isn’t the martial world originally a place where all sorts of stories circulate?”
“People certainly have a lot of interest in others’ affairs. My son isn’t even a martial artist.”
As alcohol began to enter, casual conversation gradually started to flow. Right now, the Private Martial Union where the Dark Exalt and Fighting Exalt belonged, and the New Justice Association where Namgung Jin-hyeon and I stood, were clearly on opposite sides. Shaolin’s Gakwon, who belonged to the Palace of Heavenly Worship, was likewise on the opposite side from me.
Even so, the atmosphere was thoroughly relaxed. Even if organizations collided, the relations between the individuals within those organizations were an entirely separate matter. They were people who had already exchanged interactions before the collision as well.
“Come to think of it, I don’t know if we should be laughing and joking around here like this. I came here secretly without the Union Leader’s knowledge, after all.”
“You too?”
“In your case, the Union Leader gave up on you long ago anyway.”