Chapter 114: Chapter 114
Cheon Woo-jin returned straight to the Black Tortoise Pavilion.
The injured were receiving treatment from physicians belonging to the Martial Alliance, and those whose bodies were relatively intact were also taking a rest.
Only two people, Zhuge Rin and Song Yi-yeon, were swinging their saber and sword.
Approaching Song Yi-yeon, Cheon Woo-jin asked in an indifferent tone.
“How would you feel if I became the Hidden Dragon Squad Leader?”
Song Yi-yeon, who was swinging his saber with all his might, wobbled in an instant.
He barely regained his balance after nearly falling over.
Young Hero Cheon had a habit of saying extraordinary things casually, and no matter how many times he heard it, he simply couldn’t get used to it.
“By the way, what is the Hidden Dragon Squad? This is my first time hearing of it.”
“They say it is a combat squad subordinate to the Inspection Hall, to be composed of young martial artists.”
“The Inspection Hall? Is the Black Tortoise Squad Leader becoming the Inspection Hall Master?”
Cheon Woo-jin nodded his head.
Song Yi-yeon was also not slow-witted, so he grasped the situation quickly.
“Indeed, talk has already been circulating within the Martial Alliance that it is a waste for an expert of Young Hero’s caliber to remain as a low-ranking member of a combat squad. Of course, I think so too.”
Still, to become a squad leader this quickly.
It seemed the Alliance Leader and the Chief Strategist were in a hurry.
Thinking so, Song Yi-yeon was not particularly envious.
Recognizing and acknowledging Cheon Woo-jin as an existence outside any standard had happened long ago, after all.
It was at that moment.
Suddenly, an explosive orb of the Thunderbolt Gate burst with a pop inside Song Yi-yeon’s head. When he thought about it, if it was a combat squad composed of rising talents, the probability of himself, Young Hero Cheon’s close friend, belonging to it was high.
Naturally, if there was a squad leader, there had to be a vice squad leader as well.
“Then since I am Young Hero’s closest friend, are you making me the vice squad leader? I’m adding this just in case, but it’s not that I particularly want it, I’m just asking, really just asking.”
Though he said that, Song Yi-yeon’s eyes sparkled like the galaxy.
Looking at that Song Yi-yeon, Cheon Woo-jin turned his body around.
“I have a place I need to visit briefly.”
“…”
Having received the most euphemistic yet decisive rejection in the world, Song Yi-yeon merely watched Cheon Woo-jin’s retreating back with a dumbfounded face.
* * *
The place Cheon Woo-jin headed straight for was the Disciplinary Hall.
Another moniker of Man Gi-ja was the Divine Beggar, and he was also the previous Sect Chief of the Beggars’ Sect.
Mentioning this, the Lord of the Black Overlord Castle had advised him to take Man Gi-ja’s letter and find the Sect Chief. Since he could not go to the Beggars’ Sect headquarters immediately, he had come to find the Disciplinary Hall Master, who was an elder.
“What brings you here suddenly? Hearing about it, it seems you achieved quite distinguished merits in this mission as well.”
At Cheon Woo-jin’s visit, Disciplinary Hall Master Chu Pung-gae greeted him brightly.
Cheon Woo-jin also nodded and naturally sat across from him before the table.
In Jianghu he was called the Mad Dog, and even fellow Martial Alliance members feared the Disciplinary Hall Master, but to Cheon Woo-jin, he was merely a fascinating person who smelled slightly and resembled both master White Elder and master Black Elder simultaneously.
“I wish to meet the Dragon Head Sect Chief.”
Cheon Woo-jin spoke point-blank.
The Disciplinary Hall Master was a bit flustered, but having known long ago that Cheon Woo-jin’s personality was not ordinary, he nodded his head.
“The reason?”
“To find a clue to the letter left behind by Man Gi-ja.”
“I see.”
Man Gi-ja had told the members of the Beggars’ Sect to do their utmost to help anyone who possessed his crimson knot in the future.
Since he had left the crimson knot to Cheon Woo-jin along with the letter, Chu Pung-gae also had no reason not to help as a beggar of the Beggars’ Sect.
Chu Pung-gae nodded his head and grinned.
“You are truly lucky as well.”
“What do you mean?”
“It takes quite some time to reach Kaifeng, the headquarters of the Beggars’ Sect, doesn’t it? However, as it happens, the Sect Chief is currently visiting the alliance.”
In truth, that the Dragon Head Sect Chief, famous for his lazy nature, happened to be staying in the Martial Alliance was also because of Cheon Woo-jin.
News of the events in Sichuan had spread across the entire martial world. Naturally, as the chief of the Beggars’ Sect, which was most sensitive to rumors, he had heard the news first.
The Dragon Head Sect Chief had headed straight for the alliance. Meaning that if an incident occurred in Sichuan, an expert of at least the Poison King’s caliber would have to be dispatched, so he would step up personally.
Of course, the matter was resolved by Cheon Woo-jin, and the Sect Chief was staying behind saying he might as well drink heavily with the Alliance Leader since he had come.
Once the Disciplinary Hall Master’s explanation ended, Cheon Woo-jin was about to rise from his seat. If the Sect Chief was in the alliance, he could simply go meet him directly.
The moment he made up his mind.
Cheon Woo-jin furrowed his brow slightly. Because a foul odor incomparable to that of the Disciplinary Hall Master wafted from somewhere.
“Bukli Cheon, you insolent fellow! How can you chase out the Chief of the Beggars’ Sect who came in person just because he smells? Then should a beggar smell like flowers instead of smelling bad?”
A beggar entered while grumbling with grief-filled emotion.
There was only one beggar under heaven who could enter the personal office of the Disciplinary Hall Master so casually.
Rising from his seat, Cheon Woo-jin cupped his fists in salute. He did not forget to subtly muster his qi to block his nostrils.
“I am Cheon Woo-jin of the Black Tortoise Squad.”
“Ah, so you are Senior White Flower’s disciple.”
Stumbling over, the Chief of the Beggars’ Sect plunked his buttocks onto the Disciplinary Hall Master’s desk.
The Disciplinary Hall Master’s expression crumpled, but he paid it no mind.
Studying Cheon Woo-jin’s face closely, the Sect Chief spoke.
“That fellow, looking just like Senior White Flower’s disciple, you look like you’ll make many women cry. Do you know? In fact, there were four female warriors who harbored affection for Senior White Flower and followed him around. But was Senior a man who would turn his eyes toward women? Cruel bastard. One of them was Bing So-so, whom I liked… Ah!”
The Chief of the Beggars’ Sect screamed at the sudden pain felt in his flank. The Disciplinary Hall Master had pinched his side from behind, telling him to shut that mouth.
One might ask how an elder dared pinch the Sect Chief, but the organization known as the Beggars’ Sect was inherently like that. It was an organization showing the pinnacle of horizontal culture, so to speak.
“Sect Chief, sober up a bit. Before I completely shatter your skull. Truly, there are rarely times when I feel ashamed of being a beggar of the Beggars’ Sect, but whenever I am with the Sect Chief, I feel somewhat like that.”
The Sect Chief smacked his lips.
In truth, he had sobered up long ago.
‘What kind of eyes are like that?’
His intoxication had gradually begun to recede from the moment he met Cheon Woo-jin’s eyes, and he had been wanting to stop speaking, but had simply failed to find the right timing.
“Right, what business does Senior White Flower’s disciple have seeking me out?”
He tried to act solemn for no reason, but it had no particular effect.
Cheon Woo-jin took out a letter from his bosom and handed it to the Sect Chief.
“What is this?”
“It is a letter left behind by Man Gi-ja.”
“Is that so?”
In an instant, his atmosphere transformed.
A presence befitting the position of Dragon Head Sect Chief bloomed around him. Furthermore, his eyes glaring at the letter turned golden, even if only for a very brief moment.
Cheon Woo-jin did not miss this. He remembered hearing about it from his masters during their lifetime. That there was an ultimate technique passed down only to the Chief of the Beggars’ Sect, possessing the ability to pierce through the essence of people and objects.
“Heh, it truly is a letter left by the Divine Beggar.”
In an instant, longing flashed across the eyes of the Dragon Head Sect Chief.
Because the Divine Beggar was the most respected Sect Chief in the history of the Beggars’ Sect, and at the same time, a master who was like a father to the contemporary Sect Chief.
“Mad Dog, go fetch your brass bowl.”
“You could just call me Elder Chu, yet you insist on calling me Mad Dog.”
Chu Pung-gae grumbled to himself, but brought over a brass bowl rolling around casually on the office floor. It was dented here and there, and full of scratches and dust.
From the four-knot disciple rank and above, members of the Beggars’ Sect possessed a brass bowl for begging, but there was a superstition that treating this bowl like a sacred shrine would bring poor begging results, so they would toss it anywhere.
“Are you ready? It might be visible to all of us, or it might be visible only to you.”
Cheon Woo-jin nodded his head.
Then, placing the letter into the brass bowl, the Sect Chief gently rubbed the edge of the letter with his thumb and index finger.
Soon, a blue flame arose between his fingers…
Eventually, that flame rose high as if to reach the ceiling.
At the moment Cheon Woo-jin slightly knit his brows at the truly dazzling spectacle, the flame engulfed Cheon Woo-jin as he was.
When the entire world was dyed completely white and then returned to its original state.
“…”
Cheon Woo-jin was standing in front of a very familiar hut.
It was the very place where he had lived together with his two masters.
A wind carrying the scent of wood and soil blew over and brushed against his skin. It was so vivid, just as if he had returned to that place.
To think there was such a mechanism within Man Gi-ja’s letter.
However, it was still too early to be surprised.
“You bastard Man Gi-ja, relying on that Baek fellow, you fearlessly stole and drank my alcohol! I will smash that bastard’s skull right this…!”
“I told him to drink it, so stop overdoing it. And if the alcohol is gone, we can just buy more, so why are you prancing around like a wild foal?”
Startled, Cheon Woo-jin turned his head.
There, two people he missed so dearly were bickering while holding an iron staff and a fan.
Seeing that they appeared slightly younger than the two masters Cheon Woo-jin knew, it seemed to be a matter of the past.
“Masters!”
Cheon Woo-jin shouted like a child.
However, it seemed they could not hear him.
Cheon Woo-jin wore an unusually sad expression.
He wanted to chatter all night with the masters he had met after so long, so the lingering regret remained far too thick.
Soon, resigning himself, Cheon Woo-jin sat down and watched his two masters. Just seeing them again like this was an undeniable joy.
“…”
However, master Black Elder unleashed the Dark Sky Full Moon, attempting to kill the old man presumed to be Man Gi-ja. At that, master White Elder blew away the Dark Heavens Qi with the Crane Wind Single Annihilation.
The surroundings were instantly devastated by the clash between the two masters.
“…You were the exact same in your youth as well.”
Because it was a scene he had always witnessed, Cheon Woo-jin was calm, but Man Gi-ja’s face was completely pale.
How much time had passed like that?
The masters eventually exhausted themselves and sprawled out. Originally, at times like that, he would boil a chicken and serve it, but this time Man Gi-ja sat beside them holding a liquor bottle.
Looking at the night sky, Black Elder suddenly spoke.
“Today, my lifelong cherished wish is finally fulfilled.”
“…Will you not regret it? In any case, he is your master.”
“Would I? Think a little, you Baek bastard. If I die without staining my hands with that bastard’s blood, I will be resentful even in the underworld.”
Black Elder spoke gruffly, but White Elder still wore a worried face.
Soon, the three men downed their liquor cups. The side dishes were the starlight shining overhead and the cool breeze.
“Let us go.”
White Elder rose first.
Black Elder and Man Gi-ja followed behind him.
Cheon Woo-jin could instinctively tell who the three receding figures were going to meet.
“The Dark Emperor. His disappearance was indeed related to my masters.”
In an instant, light flashed.
The three people who had left were now sitting in the yard with utterly exhausted expressions. Cheon Woo-jin had never seen his two masters look so worn out before.
“You succeeded.”
Indeed, had they failed, none of the three would have returned.
Suddenly, White Elder asked.
“Tell me, Man Gi-ja. How much lifespan do we have left?”
“Twenty years remaining for each of you.”
To seal the Dark Emperor, who had ascended to the Realm Beyond Man, the realm of an evil god, the three had used their own lifespans.
It was the result of a secret art Man Gi-ja had researched throughout his entire life.
Beside them, Black Elder’s brow furrowed tightly.
“This tiresome life. Plenty of it still remains. Now that there is no one left to beat to death, what fun is there in living?”
White Elder unusually agreed with his words.
“Originally, did we not agree to use everything in the secret art except for ten years of lifespan? Why…”
In an instant, White Elder’s expression hardened. When silence followed, Black Elder, who was lying down, also sat up.
“Beggar, how much lifespan do you have left?”
Man Gi-ja could hardly answer.
However, when the Black and White Elders glared at him, he had no choice but to open his mouth in the end.
“Well. About three months left, perhaps? I have already recorded the world to the point of being sick of it. Wouldn’t you two have far more to do in this world than me?”
Originally, all three had pledged to use everything leaving only ten years of lifespan. They thought their lives were not a waste if they could seal the unprecedented great evil known as the Dark Emperor.
However, Man Gi-ja’s thoughts were different. Unlike himself, the Black and White Elders were people far too precious to die early. Had it not been for the Dark Emperor, they were two people who would have been vying for number one under heaven in this era.
So, consuming Shaolin’s Great Return Pill, Wudang’s Supreme Clarity Pill, Mount Hua’s Purple Empyrean Pill, and even the Green Forest’s Spirit Green Pill, Man Gi-ja had maximized his own lifespan.
Man Gi-ja had poured all of his own lifespan obtained in that manner instead of theirs. It was to leave even a period of twenty years for the two.
“I have no regrets. However, it will be somewhat sudden for the Beggars’ Sect children, so I should prepare something.”
Having said so, Man Gi-ja smiled faintly and vanished.
Black Elder and White Elder could not bring themselves to hold him back.
Watching the entire scene from the side, Cheon Woo-jin only then realized the reason why his two masters had passed away on the exact same day at the exact same hour.
And exactly one month later, when Man Gi-ja visited the hut again with a serious face, that was when the real problem truly began.