Chapter 56: Chapter 56
Cheon Woo-jin returned to the Martial Alliance together with Song Yi-yeon.
Jin Un and Seok Do-byeok were also about to return, but they did not deliberately travel together.
“Did I already grow attached? Returning to the Alliance feels comfortable. Isn’t that right, Young Hero?”
“Mmh.”
When Cheon Woo-jin’s reply was ambiguous, Song Yi-yeon narrowed his eyes and asked.
“What have you been pondering so deeply since earlier?”
“The words of Master Beop-jin came to mind, you see.”
The true reason his two masters sent him to the Martial Alliance. The thought occurred that the reason he previously knew might be merely superficial.
Cheon Woo-jin gazed at the Martial Alliance with renewed eyes for some reason. The people busily coming and going, the enormous walls, and the high-fluttering flag of the Martial Alliance.
Even down to his peers gathered with triumphant expressions after completing their first solo missions.
All of that was the Martial Alliance.
‘What did they wish to show me?’
Viewing the Martial Alliance through the eyes of Master Black Elder, it was a hollow coalition of hypocrites, but viewing it through the perspective of Master White Elder, there was no other scenery so truly beautiful and wondrous.
As Cheon Woo-jin continued to contemplate, Song Yi-yeon spoke.
“Just act as your heart leads.”
“Hm?”
Cheon Woo-jin tilted his head.
At that, Song Yi-yeon grinned.
“Young Hero, aren’t you an outstanding person? Your masters surely knew this better than anyone else. They sent you because they trusted you. So if Young Hero just acts like Young Hero, won’t the day come when you understand that intention?”
“Oh…”
Cheon Woo-jin looked at Song Yi-yeon as if surprised. At that, Song Yi-yeon’s eyes narrowed.
“What. Are you surprised because I said something cool?”
“…”
“Huh, why aren’t you denying it?”
In that manner, the two approached the crowd where their peers were gathered. Of course, as always, they stayed slightly apart.
When the two approached, everyone glanced at them.
Among them was Namgung Jin as well, and someone resembling Seok Do-byeok was flattering the two, saying things like, ‘As expected of Young Hero Namgung! To wipe out the Huibei Unorthodox Path, extraordinary!’ and ‘Lady Tang So-yeon is amazing too. I know the Deyang Unorthodox Path is quite rough as well…’
Namgung Jin waved his hand as if swatting away bugs, seemingly annoyed. In truth, there was little he actually did in the process of wiping out the Huibei Unorthodox Path.
He had merely advised, ‘I am Namgung Jin, Young Patriarch of the Namgung Clan. As of today the Huibei Unorthodox Path shall be disbanded, so disperse.’
Whose words would an Unorthodox sect located in Anhui dare talk back to? In that manner, the Huibei Unorthodox Path was immediately disbanded. Tang So-yeon, who subjugated the Unorthodox Path in Sichuan, must have been similar.
Suddenly, the surroundings stirred. Jin Un and Seok Do-byeok had arrived. However, the condition of the two was terrible.
“…What on earth happened?”
“What was their mission again?”
“No, never mind Seok Do-byeok, but…”
Jin Un, who had departed looking like an imposing Daoist, had his hero headband and Daoist robes alike covered in filth. His face was also in an emaciated state like someone who had stayed up for several nights.
Arriving amidst everyone’s stares in that manner, Jin Un bowed his head slightly toward Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon, then joined the crowd.
At that sight, Namgung Jin’s eyebrows twitched.
“What was that?”
“What is it?”
At Namgung Jin’s question, Jin Un merely shrugged his shoulders.
Namgung Jin glanced back and forth between Jin Un and Cheon Woo-jin with a peculiar look, then soon withdrew his gaze.
* * *
After the youngest members who returned from their first solo missions waited for quite a long time, Heavenly Righteousness Division Head Jin Myeong-hwa, looking as though he had literally just woken up from sleep, appeared while swaying through the air.
“So troublesome. I really don’t want to work.”
“…”
Everyone looked at the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head with dumbfounded expressions. Usually, when one spoke of a division head of the Martial Alliance, it was a fairly high-ranking post, and one naturally imagined a hero commanding the squad leaders on the front lines of missions with an imposing demeanor.
However, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head looked like Gae-sik from next door, who mooched off his parents’ home past thirty years of age, scratching his belly and reading erotic art books day in and day out.
“Yaaawn. A Benevolence Division Head needs to be selected quickly. Isn’t that right? Why should I have to worry about every single mission of these green recruits?”
Namgung Jin, who happened to be standing before the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head, opened and closed his mouth, confused whether the question was addressed to him.
At that, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head narrowed his brows and spoke.
“Does being the Young Patriarch of the Namgung Clan mean you can ignore a division head’s words?”
“It is not that, but whether you were asking me…”
“It is a joke. At any rate, everyone bring your reports.”
Namgung Jin, wearing an exasperated expression, submitted his report. Starting with that, everyone presented their pre-written mission reports to the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head.
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head flopped down onto the dirt ground and flipped through the reports haphazardly. It was to the extent that one doubted whether he was reading them properly.
“…”
Amidst the quietened atmosphere, having skimmed through the reports, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head addressed each person one by one.
He swore at poorly handled parts calling them pathetic punks, and gave vague praise for well-done parts calling them slightly better punks.
Then, he suddenly pointed at Namgung Jin and Tang So-yeon in turn.
“You two over there.”
“Heavenly Tiger Squad, Namgung Jin.”
“Heavenly Tiger Squad, Tang So-yeon.”
When the two immediately gave their names, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head looked at them with narrowed eyes for some reason and spoke.
“Not bad. But don’t strut around. There must have been family privilege involved. Seriously, I told them not to send missions to hometowns.”
“…I have never strutted around.”
Namgung Jin flared up slightly.
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head glared seriously at that Namgung Jin.
Even for Namgung Jin, someone like the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head was a type he had never seen before, so he felt nervous inwardly.
After engaging in a staring contest for quite a while, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head spoke.
“Right. Don’t do so in the future either.”
“…Yes.”
Namgung Jin inwardly wondered what kind of person this was.
However, he did not look down on him in the slightest. At any rate, sitting in the position of an alliance division head meant he had proven that much capability on his own.
Furthermore, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head was known as a man counted on one’s fingers for martial strength even among the division heads of the alliance.
Having given a word each to the descendants of the Five Great Clans in that manner, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head read down the reports once more.
How much time had passed?
“What is this?”
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head, who had been flipping through haphazardly, paused. He even glared at the report with an extremely serious expression.
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head’s gaze turned toward somewhere. Consequently, everyone’s gaze also shifted there, and at the end of it stood Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon.
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head stood up from his seat and spoke.
“Splendid.”
Everyone opened their eyes wide.
From the mouth of the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head, who had categorized everyone whether from the Five Great Clans or the Nine Great Sects and One Clan as merely pathetic punks or slightly better punks, genuine praise came out for the first time.
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head fluttered the report and spoke.
“Is all of this true?”
“Yes.”
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head did not mind Cheon Woo-jin’s brief answer. He was a man with a thoroughly merit-based mindset.
“Even if you lie, it will all come to light later. This is your last chance, so speak truthfully. Is all of it true?”
“It is true.”
Cheon Woo-jin answered as if it were bothersome.
At that, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head’s gaze turned toward the report once more.
“It was a mission to arbitrate a toll dispute between the Yicheng Escort Agency and the Heungsan Stronghold. Right?”
“Yes.”
“Yet the trashy bandit bastards attacked first, and after killing them all, you barged straight into the Heungsan Stronghold and subjugated all fifty bandits including the Stronghold Leader. Correct?”
“Yes.”
The surroundings stirred greatly. A force of fifty men would only be lowest rank among the Green Forest, but even so, the Green Forest was still the Green Forest.
It was not a scale that two mere recruits could subjugate.
However, the words of the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head that followed were even more astonishing.
“After the subjugation, you passed through a village struck by a plague. As it turned out, it was not a plague but poison. The one who spread the poison was Dok-ra-su. No, wait, that bastard was still alive?”
“W-What did you say?”
Everyone was astonished, but in particular, Tang So-yeon of the Sichuan Tang Clan was greatly alarmed and approached Cheon Woo-jin. Grabbing Cheon Woo-jin’s sleeve, she looked straight up with her characteristic light-green pupils and asked.
“Where did you see him? What did he look like? No, you met that person, but how on earth…”
“Tang So-yeon.”
The cold voice of the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head cut off her words.
Only then regaining her senses, Tang So-yeon bowed her head in turn toward Cheon Woo-jin and the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head.
“…I apologize. I was just too shocked.”
“Return to your spot. Ask what you are personally curious about separately after work.”
Knowing the story between Dok-ra-su and the Tang Clan, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head did not scold her any further.
Soon, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head’s words continued.
“At any rate. Although you missed Dok-ra-su, you resolved the plague. You discovered a Small Return Pill there. Returned it to Shaolin, and on the way back…”
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head’s gaze turned toward Jin Un.
At that, Jin Un spoke of what happened himself.
It was because it was too shameful to have it spoken through another person’s mouth.
Those who had been curious about Jin Un’s disheveled appearance finally nodded their heads.
“…Such a thing happened. Young Hero Jin Un. You truly suffered greatly.”
“For Daoist Master Jin Un’s handsome face to be harmed like that. How arduous must it have been? My heart aches.”
However, what was interesting was that those consoling Jin Un were far more numerous than those praising Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon.
The reason was simple. Cheon Woo-jin was an outsider from the core group of their peers, while Jin Un was a member of the Dragon and Phoenix Society alongside Namgung Jin and Tang So-yeon.
The Dragon and Phoenix Society was a social gathering formed of outstanding rising stars under thirty years of age, and most hailed from the Five Great Clans or the Nine Great Sects and One Clan.
As social gatherings usually went, countless seniors and juniors who joined the Dragon and Phoenix Society pushed and pulled one another forward.
In other words, it meant the most solid and definite backing a rising star of the Righteous Path could aim for.
At that scene, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head clicked his tongue.
“Tsk, everyone has lost their minds.”
“…”
The Dragon and Phoenix Society favored experts, and naturally, all those who entered the alliance with high marks in the selection exam received invitations to join.
However, there were also very rare cases of those who did not, which in the present era was the case for Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon, and in the past for the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head.
The reason was simple: because they had offended the sensibilities of core figures within the Dragon and Phoenix Society.
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head pointed at Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon.
“You two have achieved merits beyond the scope of the mission. Therefore, I shall report separately to higher authorities and arrange a separate reward…”
It was then.
A man approached like a literal shadow.
His back was somewhat hunched and his hair had turned grayish-white, but the brilliance shining in his eyes was vivid enough that one could believe he was a youth who had just passed twenty.
Discovering him, irritation momentarily crossed the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head’s face before vanishing.
“What brings the Hall Master here?”
“Haha, I came to take a look at our lovely children’s faces.”
It was none other than the Personnel Inspection Hall Master.
Wearing a pleased smile, he looked at the youngest members of the Martial Alliance and whispered something into the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head’s ear.
Of course, befitting the cautious Personnel Inspection Hall Master, he did not forget to covertly deploy an energy barrier to block out the sound.
Listening to the words, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head glanced toward Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon with a serious expression.
Soon the Personnel Inspection Hall Master’s words ended.
“No, what kind of bullshit…!”
“Hm?”
“Ahem, strange words are those? First we should commend what deserves commendation, and if there is an issue, handle it separately later…”
“Now now.”
In an instant, the Personnel Inspection Hall Master’s eyes sank low.
At that, the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head closed his mouth, but he was still fuming as if angry.
“This is not a conversation to be held before children. Therefore, send those two directly to me.”
Having spoken so, the Personnel Inspection Hall Master turned around immediately, as if the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head’s opinion was of no importance.
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head mouthed something to himself.
‘That son of a bitch, really…’
The regrettable part was that the Heavenly Righteousness Division Head’s mouth shape was so accurate that everyone understood it, except for the turned Personnel Inspection Hall Master.
The atmosphere abruptly turned bleak.
Because everyone had wits, they had guessed to some extent.
That the Personnel Inspection Hall was trying to find fault with something related to Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon.
Namgung Jin thought to himself.
‘Is the Dragon and Phoenix Society keeping Cheon Woo-jin in check already? Or is it the Green Forest?’
Because there were quite a few possibilities, it was difficult to guess.
It was then. The steps of the Personnel Inspection Hall Master, who had been walking away with light footsteps, abruptly stopped.
A man was approaching from in front of him.
He was a man with a distinct trait: because he was bald.
The Heavenly Righteousness Division Head frowned as if dazzled by the glare, then bowed his head politely. Unlike when dealing with the Personnel Inspection Hall Master, it was a sincere greeting.
The monk with a benevolent face who approached literally radiating light nodded to receive the greeting, then spoke to the Personnel Inspection Hall Master.
“What on earth is the matter? What reason could the Personnel Inspection Hall have to take the children?”
“…Ahem, what do you intend to do knowing that?”
The Personnel Inspection Hall Master’s tone turned somewhat cautious.
No matter how great his power was within the alliance, the man standing before him was not just an ordinary bald man, but Martial Scripture Hall Master Myeong-cheon, who hailed from the Shaolin Eighteen Arhats.
The Martial Scripture Hall Master chuckled leisurely and spoke.
“It is nothing other than that I too have business with those children, you see.”
“You? Or the Martial Scripture Hall?”
“It is a personal matter. A communication arrived from Shaolin; it seems my martial granduncle was so pleased upon seeing those children that he forgot to give them what he intended, so he said.”
At the Martial Scripture Hall Master’s words, the Personnel Inspection Hall Master’s complexion stiffened.
Martial Scripture Hall Master Myeong-cheon was a first-generation disciple of Shaolin.
If it was his martial granduncle, that meant a martial uncle to the current Abbot as well, that is, the Beop generation.
In the current era, there was only one monk of the Beop generation.
“Well, if you have business in the Personnel Inspection Hall, take them first. Since I arrived late, it cannot be helped. My martial granduncle also said it was not an urgent matter.”
The Martial Scripture Hall Master spoke so.
Recalling Master Beop-jin in that instant, the Personnel Inspection Hall Master swept his chest in relief.
He was one of the few elders before whom even Alliance Leader Bukli Cheon would fold his waist in half to bow.
‘Why on earth would that venerable person with those green young brats…?’
Looking at Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon with a serious face, the Personnel Inspection Hall Master shook his head. No matter how he thought about it, this was not something to be done while daring to upset Master Beop-jin’s mood.
“Not at all. You take them first.”
“Is that so? Was it not important business?”
“How could that be? I can simply talk with them next time.”
Of course, next time would never come.