novelraw Chapter 260 : The Escaping Man Inhwa (2)
Chapter 260 : The Escaping Man Inhwa (2)
Chapter 260: The Escaping Man Inhwa (2)
"Thank you."
Poong Imso, having been detoxified, clasped his hands in a respectful greeting.
Though Poong Imso was a few years older than Yong Hwarin, Yong Hwarin felt like the elder.
Someone who had instantly taken down two of the Four Demonic Horsemen and turned Jang Goe—a martial master so skilled that Poong Imso couldn’t even think of fighting him—into a rag and hung him from a tree branch, simply didn’t seem like a peer.
Fortunately, the Three Chivalrous Sisters and Yong Hwarin had urgently assisted with his circulation of qi, allowing for a faster detoxification.
"Uggghhhh!"
The two from the Four Demonic Horsemen were suppressing the poison with their qi, but it seemed so vicious that they were on the verge of death.
Yong Hwarin silently watched them for a moment before sealing a few acupoints and inserting qi. Then, he revolved his Self-Revolving Inner Qi and burned away the poison within their bodies.
"Aaaaaaaaaagh!"
But to anyone watching, it would have looked like torture.
Burning poison with Self-Revolving Inner Qi’s thunder force was, of course, excruciatingly painful.
The disciples of the Mount Hua Sect had been treated with an antidote, but the Four Demonic Horsemen had no such antidote, and burning the poison was their only means of survival.
The two members of the Four Demonic Horsemen trembled and barely crawled on the ground.
Yong Hwarin showed them no mercy. He sealed their acupoints again to prevent them from moving.
"Load them onto the wagon."
The escorts, eyeing Yong Hwarin with fear, quickly lifted the two of the Four Demonic Horsemen onto the cart.
"Daji, if we keep going like this, we’ll arrive at the River Center Escort Agency soon. Hurry up and tell Sister."
"You tell her. I can’t do it."
"You idiot. If we go to the River Center Escort Agency like this, Sister might get dragged back home!"
As Jeong Suji and Jeong Daji bickered, Jeong Minji approached and asked,
"What are you two talking about?"
The two younger sisters were too busy arguing to even notice their elder sister had come near.
"O-oh, Sister. It's nothing. Let's not go to the River Center Escort Agency, let’s go somewhere else instead."
Jeong Daji stammered her words, prompting Jeong Minji to look to Jeong Suji.
"Suji, you tell me. What’s going on?"
When Jeong Minji’s expression turned serious, Jeong Suji’s face contorted. She knew how terrifying her sister could be when she looked like that.
"It’s nothing much... Just, before we took this side road, we saw Young Master Geum rushing off on horseback. Back when we were watering our horses."
"Young Master Geum Yujin? Are you sure?"
Jeong Minji’s expression darkened completely at those words.
It was as if all the candles had been snuffed out from her eyes.
"Maybe I saw wrong..."
"I know you never mistake people. If you say it's him, then it’s him. So that’s why you two took this road—to avoid him?"
When Jeong Suji nodded, Jeong Minji sighed.
"There's no helping it. We’ll just have to face it. Still, thanks to taking this road, we were able to save the Mount Hua Sect members. That’s your merit."
"Sister, are you really going to face Young Master Geum? Why would he have taken that road? Probably because he went to the Sky Ocean Merchant Union looking for you and heard something, so now he’s heading to the River Center Escort Agency."
"There must be a reason Young Master Geum came looking for us. He might be carrying a message from Mother. We’ve been away from the manor for so long, of course she'd be worried. Running away isn’t the answer."
Seeing how much stronger her sister had become since leaving the manor, Jeong Suji felt relieved. Her sister, who couldn’t go against their mother’s will and had left the manor as a way to express her feelings, now was preparing to confront Young Master Geum to express herself openly.
She had grown immensely.
'It's probably because of Young Master Yong.'
The three sisters remained silent until they reached the River Center Escort Agency.
Their hearts were heavy, and so were their tongues.
When the River Center Escort Agency came into view, the escorts rejoiced, but the Three Chivalrous Sisters wore dark expressions.
The escorts had been worried the whole time that Man Inhwa and her subordinates might ambush them again, but the Three Chivalrous Sisters actually hoped that Man Inhwa would launch an attack.
Their only thought was to buy time no matter what.
However, as Jeong Minji continued toward the River Center Escort Agency, her two younger sisters drooped like calves being led to slaughter.
"Why do you all look so down? Did you get hurt during the fight with the Ihwa Palace elder?"
Yong Hwarin asked with concern.
But the three sisters just shook their heads without a word, prompting him to quietly step away after observing them for a moment.
They looked like they were struggling with something personal, so he didn’t interfere further.
After entering the River Center Escort Agency, Yong Hwarin stayed briefly at the Yeongbingak. The arrival of the Three Chivalrous Sisters and the Heavenly Sword Hero at the River Center Escort Agency caused quite a commotion.
Escorts and workers from the bureau gathered at the Yeongbingak.
The Three Chivalrous Sisters were famous female heroes known by the names Phoenix Sword, Jade Pendant Sword, and Fury Sword, while Yong Hwarin was known as the Heavenly Sword Hero—a name that had spread beyond Henan to both Jiangnan and Jiangbei.
Given that even Dang Cheolgi recognized Yong Hwarin, his reputation had clearly reached as far as Sichuan.
"Who is the Heavenly Sword Hero?"
The murmur of people gathering flowed directly into Yong Hwarin’s ears from inside the room.
"From what Escort Kang said, they were ambushed by Ihwa Palace on the way here, but the Heavenly Sword Hero defeated them. He said thunderous enhanced qi burst out during the fight—it was earthshaking."
"I heard the same. Considering that the other escorts are all saying the same thing, it doesn’t sound like an exaggeration."
"Truly incredible. At a glance, he looks like some scholarly dandy—how is he that powerful?"
The people of the River Center Escort Agency had never properly seen someone who could be called a true murim master.
Because of the small scale of the bureau, the escorts or the escort chiefs were the strongest experts they had ever known.
Those very escorts had watched a battle filled with crashing thunder and lightning, and they were the ones who told the tale to the others at the River Center Escort Agency.
The rumor spread like wildfire, making it hard for Yong Hwarin to move around easily.
"And then there’s them—those Three Chivalrous Sisters. They said those martial heroines were so beautiful they looked like sword-wielding fairies. Said they were even more stunning than the Three Beauties of Jiangnan or Jiangbei."
Truthfully, though some had gathered to see Yong Hwarin, most of the men had come upon hearing the rumor that the Three Chivalrous Sisters were more beautiful than the famed Three Beauties of Jiangnan.
Upon hearing that, Jeong Daji glanced at the bronze mirror placed in the Yeongbingak and adjusted her hair.
If she wanted to meet people’s expectations even slightly, she needed to tidy her appearance.
When Jeong Daji finished straightening her outfit, Jeong Suji quietly pulled the mirror toward herself.
She tucked her loose sideburns behind her ears and neatened her hair.
Meanwhile, Jeong Minji simply sat there, staring blankly at the table, lost in thought.
Her two younger sisters watched her with eyes full of concern.
About half a si-jin later, while Yong Hwarin remained at the Yeongbingak, Ho Cheongun of the River Center Escort Agency arrived.
"Master Yong, my father would like to see you."
Ho Cheongun personally came to guide Yong Hwarin.
As they headed toward the main residence where the bureau leader stayed, Ho Cheongun said,
"Things were chaotic, and I didn’t get a chance to say this, but we’re greatly indebted to you."
"It’s nothing. If it had been Master Ho in my place, you would’ve done the same. Please don’t think twice about it."
Yong Hwarin, even after saving lives, didn’t try to take credit for it, which left a strong impression.
Usually in murim, people would go on about favors owed and expect something in return.
'Master Yong truly embodies the spirit of a righteous hero.'
As they walked, Yong Hwarin asked,
"Where did you place the Four Demonic Horsemen?"
"We bound them and locked them in the most secure place in the manor. But why did you bring them?"
"I heard the experts of the Northern Justice Alliance are here at your bureau. I brought them alive to hand over. Ihwa Palace seemed to be connected to the Heavenly Demon Sect. If we interrogate them, we might uncover something useful."
Ho Cheongun was impressed by how thoroughly Yong Hwarin thought through each matter and handled it.
"Please, this way."
When they arrived at the residence, Yong Hwarin passed through the corridor and opened the door.
"Not only is my father here, but also the Mount Hua Five Swords, the Four Vajras, and the Three Tyrant Sabers from the Northern Justice Alliance."
Even at those words, Yong Hwarin was not the least bit intimidated.
Watching him, Ho Cheongun felt a rush of spirit.
'I need to cultivate that same heroic presence. I couldn’t even open my mouth when I met them... But Master Yong isn’t trembling at all.'
Yong Hwarin’s bold composure struck Ho Cheongun clearly.
Creak—
Inside the grand hall of the residence, the Northern Justice Alliance’s experts were seated around a long table that could hold more than twenty people.
Yong Hwarin first turned to Bureau Chief Ho Ungil and greeted him with a clasped-hands salute.
No matter the situation, having entered the River Center Escort Agency, the first greeting must go to its host. Everyone else should be greeted through the host’s introduction.
"I, the Final Flame of the Martial World, pay respects to the Bureau Chief. I am Yong Hwarin of the Heavenly Central Sect."
Ho Ungil, with a smile on his slightly plump face, stood up.
"I never thought I’d get to meet the Heavenly Sword Hero like this. Welcome to our bureau."
He warmly welcomed Yong Hwarin with both hands and then proceeded to introduce those of the highest seniority, the Four Vajras.
"These are the Four Vajras from Shaolin Temple."
"It’s good to meet you here. Have you all been well?"
"We’ve been well."
Also seated at the hall, alongside the Four Vajras, were monks of the Reverend Arhat rank.
Yong Hwarin greeted each one of them with a clasped-hands salute and then turned toward the Mount Hua Five Swords.
"These are the Mount Hua Five Swords, renowned members of the Mount Hua Sect."
Yong Hwarin also offered his greetings to the Three Tyrant Sabers of the Pang Clan of Hebei.
Never before in his life had Yong Hwarin encountered such a gathering of powerful masters.
Though he was tense and excited, strangely enough, his mind remained calm.
'Could it be that I’ve reached the edge of the Boundary of the Upper World? Otherwise, isn’t it odd to feel so happy and excited yet still remain composed?'
All the realms Yong Hwarin had been experiencing were unfamiliar and new to him, which made them difficult to grasp.
Unbeknownst to him, the Mount Hua Five Swords, the Four Vajras, and the Three Tyrant Sabers were all experiencing the same sense of awe.
They were shocked.
'How can this be? How did someone of that age reach such a realm? Is that even possible? Astounding.'
The first among the Mount Hua Five Swords, Taoist Yucheong, couldn’t hide his admiration.
So too with the first of the Four Vajras, Reverend Daeheo.
'Is this even possible? Back when he was at the Sky Ocean Merchant Union, he was definitely not like this. Has he leapt over another realm in such a short time?'
To break through a single wall and establish a new one in martial arts could take ten years—or a lifetime.
'Hah... This is a blessing to the world of murim.'
Reverend Daeheo quietly rolled his prayer beads as he recited silent chants in his heart.
While the Taoists of Mount Hua and monks of Shaolin gazed in admiration at the Nature’s Energy flowing from Yong Hwarin, the Three Tyrant Sabers of the Pang Clan instead harbored the desire to test his martial prowess.
They, too, understood that Yong Hwarin’s realm was nothing to belittle, but as martial artists of a noble clan embedded in the secular world, they wanted to see and judge his level with their own eyes.