Episode 227
Now that the cold winter has passed and spring has arrived, the demonic forces must have begun their advance again.
‘The Murim Alliance would have dispatched elite warriors to help the Murim people who had gathered together in the communal faction.’
If I remember correctly, the person who led the dispatched warriors was none other than the Great Lord of the Blue Dragon.
But the Blue Dragon Lord was now in front of me.
It meant that history was progressing differently from the previous life.
‘Was someone else dispatched for some reason?’
I narrowed my eyes and rubbed my chin, then quickly shook my head.
A lot has already changed from my previous life.
There was no way I could find an answer just by thinking about it alone.
‘It would be quicker to ask someone who knows the situation.’
“······.”
Coincidentally, among the warriors brought by the Great Blue Dragon, there was one familiar face.
He was the man who was in charge of evaluating me during the third round of the Yongbong branch preliminaries.
A martial artist from the Namgung family.
In the past, when the black swordsmen hired by Changin Dojang attacked me, he was also the person who appeared as if he had been waiting.
“Hmm! greatness!”
It seemed like he knew he had done something wrong, as he glanced at me like a scared puppy.
I approached him with a smile and spoke to him.
“Long time no see. “Mr. Musa.”
“It’s been a long time… Wow. “Sacheon Branch Manager.”
The man answered with a very stiff expression.
A laugh came naturally.
[So, you’re from Hwangryongmugwan? You didn’t even graduate?]
[yes.]
[I wonder how on earth it got here.]
I wondered if it was the same examiner who had an extremely arrogant attitude.
Where on earth did the endless pride in my family of origin go?
“I think this is the first time we’ve seen each other since the Yongbong branch meeting.”
“Yeah, I see. “Time seems to pass so quickly.”
“Would you mind talking to me for a moment?”
“I’m sorry, but I’m on a mission right now…”
“If you do this, I will ask the Lord for permission. “Wouldn’t that work?”
“······her?”
The man’s face instantly turned an earthy color.
The faces of the Blue Dragon Team members watching nearby were filled with envy.
I asked the Great Blue Dragon in a loud voice as if driving a wedge.
“Can I borrow Master Namgung for a while?”
“Did the two of you know each other?”
“yes. “At the time of the Yongbong branch, I met him as a match official and participant.”
“I see. Normally we can’t, but let’s make an exception this time. “This is a request from the Sacheon branch manager, not from anyone else.”
“thank you.”
As I narrowed my eyes and glanced to the side, a pitifully stiff figure of a man came into view.
I gestured with my hand in the direction of the guest room.
“Please go.”
* * *
I was able to obtain a lot of information through Namgung Gong, a Blue Dragon member from the Namgung family.
“Is that true?”
“exactly.”
“That’s surprising. “I thought they would start moving right after winter.”
“They also have no choice but to be cautious. “There are quite a few warriors who have gathered in the communal faction.”
“······.”
No one other than the Great Lord of the Blue Dragon was dispatched to Gansu.
They didn’t even send reinforcements in the first place.
Because the Demonic Cult’s forces have not shown any significant movement yet.
‘History has changed greatly.’
It wasn’t difficult to guess why.
This may be because the Iron Blood Demon Army that was preparing the artificial ruins was subdued, and as a result, the cult leader’s plan collapsed.
In original history, when the demonic army that had swallowed up Cheonghae finished reorganizing and began marching east, rumors spread by the Iron Blood Demon Army struck the entire central plains.
The martial arts forces in various places committed the atrocity of dispatching the elites of the Samun to Guizhou in a situation where it was not enough to focus on the war against the Demon Cult.
The Demonic Cult took advantage of that opportunity and swallowed Gansu whole.
‘As the plan went awry, the timing of the advance had to be adjusted. It would be reasonable to think so.’
Honestly, I was surprised.
I thought that the Demon Cult leader would ignore one or two minor variables.
Nangonggong seems to think that the Demonic Cult is showing a passive attitude because they are wary of the warriors who have gathered in the communal faction, but my thoughts were different.
I knew because I had memories of my past life.
——————
faqwiki.us
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
The power currently gathered in the communal faction will never be able to stop the advance of the Demonic Cult.
The power possessed by the Demonic Cult was much greater than what the Baekdo martial arts people vaguely imagined.
The reason the Iron Blood Demon Army was dispatched to Guizhou to create artificial ruins was an arrangement to reduce the sacrifices on the Demon Cult side and hasten the conclusion.
It was nothing more and nothing less.
‘I don’t know what the plan is.’
There was no way the religious leader would stop his advance and be satisfied with having swallowed up Cheonghae.
There had to be something going on.
“thank you. “It was very helpful.”
“What is this?”
“Anyway, I’ve just returned from South Manchuria, so I’m at a loss for news.”
“Is this all you have to say?”
“Is that possible? Even if you get valuable information, you can’t just keep your mouth shut. Please eat. “I will pay for the food.”
Nangungong picked up his chopsticks with a nervous expression.
As he glanced at me, it seemed like he didn’t like the food laid out on the table.
Should we really say that he is from the Five Generations?
I had a very picky appetite.
I ordered only the most expensive foods sold at the restaurant.
“Did anything else special happen?”
“Something special?”
“I’m asking if something happened while I was away. ”
“Nothing special happened. Oh, there was an incident recently where a new member of the group had his life threatened by an assassin. “There was a lot of noise because of that for a while.”
“Are you saying that an assassin targeted a new member of the group and not an executive of the group?”
“If it had been an ordinary terminal, the incident would not have become such a big deal. “They said the victim was a promising player who made it to the finals of the Yongbong branch.”
“······!”
“Did you say his name was Mo Yong Hyowon?”
Even after listening to this point, I couldn’t not know.
The identity of the evil beast that attacked the rookie Maengdo is none other than Seo Ho-seon.
It was I who ordered Seo Ho-seon to be assassinated in the first place.
“You’re welcome. “It ended up being an attempt, but they say a very dangerous situation arose.”
“······.”
“Now that I think about it, I guess I’m in a bad relationship with the branch manager. “Didn’t we face each other in a competition?”
“yes. Thirty-two faced each other at a strong level. …So what happened to the pleural effusion?”
“I heard you missed it unfortunately. They said that Baek Soo-kwon, who was involved in the chase, was not an ordinary assassin. “He is presumed to be an expert who has at least reached the pinnacle of excellence.”
I internally sighed with relief.
At least, it seemed like there would be no chance of reuniting with Seo Ho-seon in the Murim Alliance’s underground prison.
‘Anyway, that’s strange.’
Seo Ho-seon failed his mission.
Considering that Namgung-gong used the expression ‘it ended up being an attempted attempt,’ there was a high probability that the target, Mo Yong-hyo-won, was alive and well.
I felt puzzled.
For the current Seo Ho-seon, assassinating Mo Yong-hyo-won would not have been a task.
I couldn’t figure out what variable occurred that caused things to go wrong.
‘Well, you can hear the detailed story directly from Seo Ho-sun himself later.’
* * *
Arrived at the headquarters of the Murim Alliance.
After informing the warrior guarding the entrance of their arrival and waiting, a man wearing a military uniform symbolizing the Jujakdaewon (朱雀隊員) appeared and guided the group.
The woman’s face was familiar to my eyes.
It was a middle-aged woman who had previously served as a guide when the leader called and visited the headquarters.
“Please use this place during your stay in Meng.”
“Thank you for the guidance.”
There is a conversation that feels like déjà vu.
While the rest of the group was resting at the lodgings, I headed straight to Maengjubu (盟主部) under the guidance of a member of the main team.
Unlike before, he did not go alone, but accompanied Hwayeon Woo.
“Welcome.”
As I entered the spacious conference room, about a dozen pairs of eyes turned towards me.
The old man sitting at the head table, the Murim lord Hwabaek Joo, offered me a seat with a bright expression.
After politely bowing and taking a seat, I gestured to Woo Hwayeon sitting next to me and said.
“This is Woo Hwa-yeon Sojeo, the natural blood relative of the Beast Palace Lord and the maternal granddaughter of the Doggok Lord.”
As soon as the introduction was over, exclamations came from everywhere.
A murmur of noise filled the conference room.
“Huh.”
“You really brought me here.”
“Should I really call it a heavenly dragon? “You’ve done something big this time.”
In particular, the response from Taoist Noh, who was sitting on the left, was great.
Although it was my first time seeing his face, I was able to guess his identity from the pattern drawn on his sleeve.
‘A pattern symbolizing the Jeomchang faction.’
It seems that the chief scholar of the Jeomchang faction had contacted an elder monk who was a monk in advance and asked him to give me strength.
It was truly something to be thankful for.
It was worth the hard work and debt to the Jeomchang faction.
“······.”
On the other hand, the face of the wiry old man sitting on the right was very distorted.
An elder from the communal faction, Namhakgeom (嵐虐劍).
He was the culprit that made me go on an unplanned trip to South Manchuria.
It seemed like he was concerned about Hwang Ho-jin’s well-being, as he went out of his way to show up in an uncomfortable place.
“What about the non-aggression pact?”
“here it is.”
I took out the documents from my pocket and placed them on the table.
Zhuge-hwan quickly approached and picked up the document and handed it to Joo Hwa-baek.
After checking the contents of the document, a satisfied smile appeared on Hwabaek Joo’s lips.
“They really did a great job.”
“no.”
“There is no need to be humble. Thanks to you, the Jungwon Murim can no longer worry about what’s going on and can focus entirely on the fight against the Demon Cult.”
“······.”
“He has made a great contribution, so he should be rewarded appropriately.”
I inwardly raised the corner of my mouth.
Thanks to the mission’s activities, Yunnan’s factions and families, including the Jeomchang faction, were able to join the front lines.
No one here could deny my credit.
Hwabaek Joo looked around and asked.
“I’d like to ask your opinion. What kind of reward do you think should be given to the Sacheon branch leader?”
Sohyeongeom (昭賢劍) narrowed his eyes and swept his beard.
Wan Liquan twitched the corner of his mouth as if he wanted to say something.
He cleared his throat, saying, “The sword is powerful.”
“There is one thing I want to tell you first.”
As I slowly raised my hand and spoke, the murmur of noise subsided in an instant.
All eyes in the crowd were focused on me.
I took a deep breath and said what I had prepared.
“I didn’t do this alone. Thanks to the help of many people, I was able to successfully complete the mission. So, I think the award should be given to all members of the delegation.”
“You don’t have to worry. “I have no intention of ignoring their hard work.”
Joo Hwa-baek, who burst into laughter once, nodded and answered.
The gaze he was looking at was full of goodwill.
There was a warm atmosphere in the conference room.
At that time, Namhakgeom, who was watching the situation, quietly opened his mouth.
“How about something like this?”
martial arts,
