Chapter 76: Chapter 76
Kyaaa!
Astonished by the scream echoing throughout the entire Black Tortoise Pavilion, the members of the Black Tortoise Squad rushed into motion in droves.
The door to the room where Cheon Woo-jin and Zhuge Rin were rattled violently as if it would burst open at any second.
With his hand still placed on Zhuge Rin’s back, Cheon Woo-jin extended his other hand and blocked the door shut using the subtlety of Telekinetic Attraction. Even as five or six burly men strained with all their might, the door did not budge in the slightest.
In the midst of that, Cheon Woo-jin’s energy reached the second blocked meridian.
Zhuge Rin was suddenly struck with terror.
“Y-You said it would sting a little…”
“It feels like doing it this way will take too long.”
Cheon Woo-jin cleanly ignored Zhuge Rin’s words.
In order to minimize the pain, he had tried to pierce the meridians one by one, slowly, but it seemed to hurt more than expected.
Of course, having never experienced it himself, he didn’t know well, but…
In any case, he felt that if he pierced them one by one like this, Zhuge Rin might become exhausted midway and give up.
If so, there was only one method.
“I will pierce them all at once.”
“H-Huh?”
Zhuge Rin’s face turned pale.
Cheon Woo-jin spoke resolutely.
“It might hurt quite a bit, but if you open your mouth this time, your meridians will be damaged, so you must endure it well.”
“W-Wait…”
However, once he resolved to do something, there was no hesitation.
Cheon Woo-jin had always faced every matter with such an attitude. Naturally, this occasion was the same.
‘Even a slight sting hurt this much, and it’s going to hurt quite a bit?’
Zhuge Rin felt it instinctively.
This was not right. She might die at this rate. Just as she was about to say that she would endure quietly so let’s pierce them one by one.
Crack, crackle!
A sound that should never come from a human body rang out.
Simultaneously, Zhuge Rin’s eyes rolled back.
* * *
“Vice Squad Leader! Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. A bug was there, so I was just a bit startled.”
Zhuge Rin’s voice was calm.
Only then did the relieved members of the Black Tortoise Squad retreat.
Silence flowed within the room.
Cheon Woo-jin wiped away a bead of sweat trickling down his cheek, while Zhuge Rin… her entire body was already drenched in sweat.
It was an immense agony. For an instant, she had even lost consciousness. However, a joy large enough to completely eclipse the exhaustion lingered across her face.
“I feel like I’ve thrown off a hundred-pound weight.”
“It should be so.”
Zhuge Rin’s meridians had been blocked far more stubbornly than anticipated. To the point where he realized once again what a venomous bastard Zhuge Seong had been.
Under such conditions, the mere fact that she had displayed martial arts including lightness arts meant that Zhuge Rin’s martial talent was extraordinary.
Soon, that blocked talent would bloom in an instant. The Vice Squad Leader would become a martial artist on an entirely different level.
“Circulating your qi and meditating for about a quarter of an hour will make you feel much better.”
Having said so, Cheon Woo-jin was about to open the door and leave, but feeling that the Black Tortoise Squad members might misunderstand somehow, he needlessly exited through the window instead.
The Black Tortoise Squad members did not know that Cheon Woo-jin was inside the room.
* * *
When Cheon Woo-jin needlessly leaped out the window and walked in through the main entrance of the Black Tortoise Pavilion, Song Yi-yeon made a fuss and spoke.
“Young Hero Cheon, where did you go again? Right now, it seems something major happened to the Vice Squad Leader.”
“A major event?”
“Didn’t you hear it earlier? It was truly an enormous scream. For a moment, I even mistook it for being struck by sound arts.”
Cheon Woo-jin merely shrugged his shoulders and spoke.
“Is she still in her room?”
“Yes. I was pondering whether to go in or not.”
“It would be better to wait about a quarter of an hour, and if she doesn’t come out, check on her again. You said she told you she was fine.”
“Mmh, that is true.”
Song Yi-yeon nodded his head.
Soon observing the surroundings, he lowered his voice and spoke.
“By the way, if you caught the Shadowless Divine Thief, did you really retrieve the treasure map?”
Nodding his head, Cheon Woo-jin explained what had transpired. Song Yi-yeon’s eyes grew wider and wider, until he ended up holding his breath.
A hidden cave of the Three Eccentrics of the Righteous Path was truly an astonishing matter, was it not?
“Was there a formidable item?”
“There was nothing special.”
“There is no way that’s true…”
Yet it was true.
The red knot that could gain the support of the Beggars’ Sect held no particular meaning for Cheon Woo-jin. It was because he had already gained the goodwill of the Hao Sect.
Furthermore, the letter left for Cheon Woo-jin by Man Gi-ja…
Surprisingly, it had no contents whatsoever.
Only the name ‘Cheon Woo-jin’ was written, and beneath it was completely blank paper.
Because throwing it away felt uncomfortable, he kept it inside his robes for now, but even Cheon Woo-jin could not understand Man Gi-ja’s eccentric behavior.
Cheon Woo-jin recalled Man Gi-ja’s hidden cave for a moment, then shifted his gaze.
Having arrived at some point, the White Dragon Squad Leader was sitting in a corner with Black Tortoise Squad Leader, chatting about something. The White Dragon Squad Leader’s expression looked far more relaxed than it had earlier in the dining hall.
It was at that moment.
“Ah, Young Hero Cheon. You were here.”
At the clear voice heard from the side, Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon turned their heads at the same time.
A gallant Daoist tightly binding a pure white hero headband around his forehead was approaching with a beaming smile.
“Young Hero Jin Un.”
It was Jin Un, the Plum Blossom Swordsman of the Mount Hua Sect.
Approaching them, Jin Un handed over a letter.
“Hearing that a letter arrived from the Mount Hua Sect, I stopped by the Courier Hall, and also received a letter addressed to Young Hero Cheon. The Hall Master asked me to deliver it on his behalf.”
Song Yi-yeon’s eyes narrowed. The Courier Hall was an organ managing the post stations and messengers under the Martial Alliance. As a place that dealt with intelligence in its own right, it tended to enforce strict security.
Previously, when he went to pick up a letter from the Song Clan, because his father had sent a letter addressed to Young Hero Cheon as well, he had tried to take it on his behalf, only to be rejected.
The reason was that one might open another person’s letter without permission.
“Ha, not all Daoists are upright, so to discriminate so blatantly is absurd!”
Jin Un scratched his head awkwardly.
It wasn’t that all Daoists enjoyed the Courier Hall Master’s trust, but merely that Jin Un himself was counted among the very most upright even among Daoists…
‘It is embarrassing to say with my own mouth.’
For that reason, Jin Un merely cleared his throat repeatedly.
In any case, receiving the letter, Cheon Woo-jin tilted his head.
“Heng Clan Merchant Guild?”
It was a merchant guild he had never heard of before.
Could it be that the Hao Sect sent some information?
After pondering briefly, he opened the letter.
Jin Un and Song Yi-yeon also looked at Cheon Woo-jin with subtly curious faces.
Reading it slowly, Young Hero Cheon’s expression shifted slightly. Considering he was a person whose expression rarely changed under ordinary circumstances, it seemed the contents inside were not trivial.
Soon, the letter flared up and burned within Cheon Woo-jin’s hand.
It was the profound method of Samadhi True Fire, but the two men already knew enough about Cheon Woo-jin to be shocked by this level of feat.
“Young Hero, what were the contents that you wear such a grave expression?”
“It looks no different from usual to me…”
At Jin Un’s words, Song Yi-yeon let out a chuckle.
“It is because Young Hero Jin Un does not know yet. Only someone like me, who has observed Young Hero Cheon the longest, can perceive the subtle changes.”
“…Aha.”
While the two exchanged useless banter.
Cheon Woo-jin’s gaze turned toward the White Dragon Squad Leader.
“An orchard, is it.”
The White Dragon Squad Leader was conversing with the Black Tortoise Squad Leader as usual while biting into an apple.
Fortunately, luck was on his side this time. Zhuge Seong was dead, and he had severed ties with the Unorthodox Path he had dealt with by handing over a considerable sum of money.
Although it pained him, because the money he had amassed all this while was substantial, he could maintain the enterprise independently. Looking at it in the long run, he would actually be able to earn vast sums of money.
Suddenly looking at Cheon Woo-jin and meeting his eyes, the White Dragon Squad Leader hurriedly turned his head.
‘That isn’t just an ordinary monster. He isn’t just an ordinary madman either.’
He had escaped the Black Tortoise Pavilion surrounded by the Disciplinary Hall as if going on a neighborhood stroll, and was a fellow who wrapped up immense events in a short period and casually returned.
As long as such a monster existed, he could not bring down the Black Tortoise Squad. How could he accomplish something that even Zhuge Seong had failed to do?
Since things had turned out like this, it was better to simply push for Cheol Ji-ak to become a division head and reap some crumbs later.
Just as the White Dragon Squad Leader was thinking so.
Cheon Woo-jin approached. Just as in the dining hall, whenever that fellow drew near, he felt as if Mount Tai were walking toward him.
It was probably because he had committed many sins.
While the White Dragon Squad Leader stroked his pounding chest, Cheon Woo-jin, who had drawn right up before his nose before anyone realized, spoke to the Black Tortoise Squad Leader.
“Squad Leader, I shall step out for a short while.”
“Did you forget that you received a mission suspension? No matter what, you must observe Alliance law.”
“I understand that going out is permitted.”
“That is only possible if you submit a legitimate reason and obtain the Alliance’s permission. Of course, leaving the Alliance would make you a free man, but… that’s not it, right?”
The Black Tortoise Squad Leader looked at Cheon Woo-jin with a worried face.
It felt like only yesterday that he had rejoiced over wonderful youngest members joining the Black Tortoise Squad. Yet, thinking about it, he had only received from the youngest members and had done nothing for them.
Having resolved to definitely do something for the youngest members now, if he casually left like this, it would become meaningless.
In particular, if the boundary of the Alliance disappeared for Cheon Woo-jin, he felt that somehow words like Demonic or Blood would be attached to his moniker in the future.
Though he could not aid this fellow with martial might, he felt it was his duty to guide him onto the right path.
Fortunately, Cheon Woo-jin had no intention of leaving the Alliance either. It was because he had not yet properly grasped why his two masters had sent him to the Martial Alliance.
“I merely intend to attend to some business.”
“What if permission isn’t granted?”
“Then I suppose I cannot go.”
Cheol Ji-ak looked at him with surprise.
Then, Cheon Woo-jin looked at the White Dragon Squad Leader.
‘If I cannot find evidence at the orchard, I will have no choice but to ask directly.’
Of course, that process would not be gentle.
Did the Black Tortoise Squad Leader know what Cheon Woo-jin was thinking? In any case, because it was the first request made by the youngest member, he felt he had to grant it.
“The problem is how to obtain permission from the higher-ups…”
Just as Cheol Ji-ak was lost in contemplation.
Stepping forward casually, Song Yi-yeon spoke.
“I have a method. From what I heard, permission from a hall master rank or above is required to leave, correct?”
“That is correct, but…”
Cheol Ji-ak’s eyes narrowed. Overshadowed by Cheon Woo-jin’s massive incidents, Song Yi-yeon was also a fellow who frequently caused petty troubles.
In any case, because they were the two youngest members stirring up all sorts of tempests in the Martial Alliance, an uneasy feeling arose.
Whether aware of that feeling or not, Song Yi-yeon smiled with his characteristically charming grin and spoke.
“We just have to make use of that young hero.”
Everyone’s gazes turned in the direction Song Yi-yeon pointed.
There stood a gallant Daoist with a completely bewildered expression.
* * *
“Hmph, if it is a summons from the Mount Hua Sect, one must rightfully answer. But do those two definitely have to go together?”
Stroking his grey beard, the Courier Hall Master looked at Cheon Woo-jin and Song Yi-yeon with awkward expressions.
Jin Un wore an even more awkward smile as he spoke.
“Yes, the Sect Leader wished to see the two of them.”
“Mmh, is that so.”
The Courier Hall Master’s eyes narrowed.
That fellow Cheon Woo-jin was a person of particular interest even within the Alliance. Of course, he knew that the Disciplinary Hall Master and the Alliance Leader harbored goodwill toward him, and that the mission suspension was merely a formality, but…
After agonizing for a long time, the Courier Hall Master eventually nodded his head.
“Well, if you are with them, nothing untoward should happen. Will you promise in the name of the Plum Blossom Swordsman that they will not cause trouble?”
“I-In the name of the Plum Blossom Swordsman?”
Swallowing hard, Jin Un looked at Song Yi-yeon.
Song Yi-yeon nodded with a solemn expression.
Telling a lie for the first time in his life, Jin Un had never imagined he would end up staking the name of the Plum Blossom Swordsman. The white hero headband wrapped around his forehead felt shameful.
However…
‘Young Hero Cheon is a savior of my life…’
Song Yi-yeon had hooked Jin Un by bringing up that point. Having thoroughly grasped Jin Un’s personality, he knew that Jin Un could never refuse when words like life savior were mentioned.
Song Yi-yeon’s prediction was precise.
“Y-Yes… In the name of the Plum Blossom Swordsman…”
“Very well, good.”
Thud. The official seal of the Courier Hall Master was firmly stamped on a document.
* * *
“I am ruined. The merit I accumulated my entire life has vanished in an instant. To dare stake the name of the Plum Blossom Swordsman and even mention the Sect Leader to tell a lie. Immeasurable Buddha, I have no ability to bear the wrath of the Primordial Heavenly Worthy.”
Jin Un fell into despair. His face was actually pale.
At that sight, Song Yi-yeon clicked his tongue.
“Then switch to Buddhism this time around. There were many wonderful people in Shaolin. You can go from the Plum Blossom Swordsman to the Lotus Blossom Swordsman.”
“…”
Jin Un poured fire from his eyes. Regardless, Song Yi-yeon burst into hearty laughter as if finding it hilarious.
While the two were exchanging comic banter, Cheon Woo-jin recalled the letter Ha In-seong had sent under an assumed name.
1. The White Dragon Squad Leader is colluding with the Unorthodox Path and running a business through an orchard operated by his family. The location is Heyang in Shaanxi.
2. The hall master position for which the Black Tortoise Squad Leader is a candidate for promotion is the Inspection Hall Master.
3. Unless you are an inferior man who forgets benevolence, be sure to seek me out after the matter is finished.
The Inspection Hall performed duties similar to those of the Disciplinary Hall.
If there was a difference, the Disciplinary Hall was an organ that enforced penalties according to Alliance law when an incident broke out, whereas the Inspection Hall was an organ that constantly probed the Alliance without particular cause and examined corruption and irregularities among Alliance members on its own.
It was a new hall created simultaneously with Alliance Leader Bukli Cheon’s ascension, who detested corruption and irregularities to the extreme.
In short, it was the Disciplinary Hall of punishment and the Inspection Hall of prevention.
‘It suits the Squad Leader after all.’
Given the Black Tortoise Squad Leader’s disposition, the moment he attained the post of Inspection Hall Master, an enormous gale would blow through the Martial Alliance. And his close friend, the White Dragon Squad Leader, would know this better than anyone else.
“Young Hero, so where are we going? Having become a free man after a long time, I feel slightly excited.”
“Indeed. Tell us now. I staked the name of the Plum Blossom Swordsman after all.”
“Young Hero Jin Un, you really hold a grudge.”
“…”
Song Yi-yeon and Jin Un glared at each other.
Letting out a sigh at that scene, Cheon Woo-jin debated whether to just leave them behind, but since he had managed to come out thanks to the wit of the two men, he shook his head.
“We shall head west.”
Having said so, Cheon Woo-jin pointed in a direction with his index finger.
Jin Un and Song Yi-yeon said simultaneously.
“That is east.”
“…”
Cheon Woo-jin subtly shifted his direction with an awkward air.
“To think Young Hero Cheon had no sense of direction.”
“Immeasurable Buddha…”