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Chapter 166 – Jwa Do-gyul (2)
Translated by : moonchildkhz
***
When Woon-seong’s gaze landed on Oh Jun-seong, the man shivered.
But he wasn’t surprised because an assassin had actually come.
Indeed, Master was right.
“If the Heavenly Demon tries to kill you, tell him.”
Thanks to Cho Dong-sang’s orders, Oh Jun-seong had preserved his life.
As the man was trembling, Woon-seong said, “Eastern Depot?”
At the question, the man calmed down. He was trained to be that way in the first place.
Information about the Eastern Depot was strictly controlled not only within the imperial court, but also outside.
That was why those of the Eastern Depot were trained to never reveal any information regarding the bureau, even in the face of death.
Oh Jun-seong was no different. That was why he was composed.
As if the man’s attitude did not matter, Woon-seong settled into his chair and crossed his legs. “Perhaps the assassin who attacked me was from the Eastern Depot. I don’t know why, but I think it is so.”
Oh Jun-seong turned his gaze to Woon-seong. The same was true of Sang Gwan-chuk.
The man, Geum Gwang, could have been a simple assassin.
They hadn’t even had a conversation, so he was wondering how the Heavenly Demon could be so sure.
This question was soon resolved.
“The assassins of Zhongyuan and those of the Eastern Depot have subtly different ways of hiding their presence. The assassins of Murim start by killing the sound of their footsteps, then hiding their movements. On the contrary, assassins of the Eastern Depot are trained to synchronize their energy with the environment, rather than silence their steps.”
Woon-seong paused, then continued on:
“Although the lines are being blurred, it is difficult to completely erase habits that have been passed down for generations. That is why even if the boundary is crossed, there is still a subtle difference.”
Woon-seong turned.
He pointed at the headless corpse of the assassin.
“He assimilated with the energy around him just before he killed his steps. Thanks to that, I knew he was an assassin of the Eastern Depot, and likely your peer. Your skills suggest that you are no ordinary assassin; you are either the best of the best or an advanced assassin of your class.”
Woon-seong stopped talking, turning to look at the man.
He simply looked, but Oh Jun-seong felt like the gaze was coldly piercing through him. Perhaps was surprised by the level of insight, inferring affiliation merely by the habits of an assassin.
Regardless, Woon-seong continued to stare.
“W-What are you saying?”
The man’s words trembled and Woon-seong chuckled. The fangs that appeared when he smiled gleamed like those of a beast.
“An assassin of the Eastern Depot made his move. That would have been made in secret. But you know this information in advance and even pass it on to me?”
Woon-seong tapped on the armrest with his fingertips.
“In order for you to know this information in advance, it would be impossible unless you were a very senior official within the bureau.”
One side of Woon-seong’s mouth twitched up.
“One eunuch sends an assassin to kill, another sends an assassin to give me information. Isn’t it funny?”
Woon-seong rose from his seat. He then grabbed Oh Jun-seong by the collar.
“What is going on in your organization? Are you having some civil war?”
Oh Jun-seong trembled hearing Woon-seong’s growl.
“……”
After a while, he opened his mouth.
“My master is not a mere eunuch.”
His master was the chief.
He was definitely an eunuch. No, he was not a normal eunuch, but the eunuch who ruled over the entire bureau.
But now…?
The man had lost his position as the chief, and even his name had been stolen from him, forcing him to live like a savage in the dark.
Nevertheless, he continued to live on thanks to many of his servants who remained inside the bureau and who knew the truth.
Of course, Oh Jun-seong did not tell Woon-seong any of that. He had not been ordered to speak of it, nor did he have a reason to.
However, he said something else.
“What is certain is that Master is trying to help you.”
“Trying to help me?”
Oh Jun-seong nodded, adding, “And Nanchang.”
Woon-seong stared at the man, searching through his soul.
Oh Jun-seong closed his eyes.
“Hmph.”
Woon-seong dropped the man’s collar.
He then called out an order, “Offer lodging for the intruder. Just make sure he doesn’t stray more than 30 meters from the area. If he tries to escape with force, you can kill him on the spot.”
Gwan Tae-ryang shouted loudly, “Understood.”
At that moment, Oh Jun-seong knew: Until everything is clear, I’m a prisoner…
Gwan Tae-ryang dragged the man off.
Only Woon-seong and Sang Gwan-chuk were left inside the tent.
There was a beat of awkward silence.
Woon-seong deliberately poured water into a cup.
Watching him do it, Sang Gwan-chuk worriedly asked, “Are you alright?”
Woon-seong nodded his head. He could feel the poison swirling inside his body, but it was bearable.
Not yet.
Yes, not yet. I can’t stand it, but I will endure it.
Woon-seong clenched his fist.
He then changed the subject.
“Senior assassin…”
“They are arrogant. What were they thinking by sending an assassin into the middle of the Cult?”
Woon-seong chuckled bitterly. He could guess why the assassins had been sent, but he still asked Sang Gwan-chuk.
“You know why, don’t you?”
Sang Gwan-chuk was silent for a moment. Woon-seong also did not speak.
Perhaps the silence sounded like a push to speak, as the Strategist sighed and said, “I cannot fool the Leader.”
“I noticed too.”
“Perhaps the Eastern Depot sent an assassin to find out what the Leader was up to?”
“To see how poisoned I am?”
Sang Gwan-chuk nodded.
“Master endured a little longer. No matter how you look at it, the poison won’t work right away.”
“Nevertheless, the former leader refrained from using internal qi as much as possible, unless it was a special circumstance. That was how he managed to suppress the poison for so long.”
Woon-seong’s eyes trembled. “He was restraining his internal qi to the fullest extent?”
Sang Gwan-chuk nodded.
In Woon-seong’s mind, memories of his training with Chun Hwi rushed to the fore.
The image of Chun Hwi facing him, the figure of Chun Hwi as he split the moon.
Before Woon-seong, Chun Hwi had shown no sign of holding back his internal qi.
The man had acted that way, despite knowing that using his strength would bring him closer to death.
“Master.”
Woon-seong bowed his head.
I didn’t know any of that. I was just trying to take advantage of my status as the Young Leader.
Chun Hwi had treated him as a real disciple, no matter how Woon-seong felt.
Woon-seong desperately tried to reach for Chun Hwi in his mind, but the man had already left this earth.
With his head down, Woon-seong told the Strategist, “I want to be alone for a while.”
Sang Gwan-chuk nodded and turned away.
***
The day after the assassin was sent to Woon-seong’s tent, there was a huge commotion in the middle of Murim.
Hundreds of people were filling the field.
With all these people gathered, it was surprising that there was not some huge disturbance.
There were a few words here and there. Some talking here, another over there.
What was more surprising was they were all the leaders of different sects and factions. They were all masters in their own right, but they were all affiliates of the Martial Alliance.
Hundreds were gathered.
As the atmosphere continued, a flag slowly rose from the platform in the middle of the field.
A flag that symbolized the Lord of Murim.
The Martial Alliance.
As the flag rose into the air, whatever talking there ceased.
It was the authority of the lord.
As it rose, the elders of the Martial Alliance ascended the platform.
Looking at their faces, they were all famous people of Murim.
If those below the platform had names that shook each province, then those walking up had names that could shake not just one province but the whole world.
Murim’s masters had walked up, then parted to the sides, opening up a path.
It was the appearance of the Martial Alliance.
As soon as the lord appeared, everyone swallowed their saliva.
Looking at them, Jwa Do-gyul slowly opened his mouth.
“Haha, before I start, I would like to thank all the sect leaders for rushing here in one month without delay because of a call from this old man.”
Roar-roar!
Jwa Do-gyul’s voice echoed through the area. All the sect leaders were astonished by the strength in those words.
Ugh, the lord’s strength.
It is nothing compared to before.
With this level of strength, I can say that he has reached the end of Transcendence.
The ability of the Lord is not lacking compared to those at the top of the 72 Supreme Masters.
Jwa Do-gyul’s current strength was incomparable to back when his finger had been sliced off by Hyuk Woon-seong.
In fact, he was able to contest for the throne amongst the Supreme Masters.
The Twin Stars and the 10 martial artists just beneath them were considered the 12 Supreme Masters.
Nok Yu-on, Woon-seong’s master, had been amongst them.
However, as the field of Transcendence-Absolution was quite fluid, people often broadened this list.
With the exception of the Buddhist Star and the Sword Star, the 72 strongest martial artists in the world were often called the 72 Supreme Masters.
Even among the most supreme masters, Jwa Do-gyul was there.
It was not the same as ten years ago, when he could barely be considered as the bottom of the 72.
Seeing the people surprised, Jwa Do-gyul smiled before opening his mouth once again.