novelraw Chapter 346 : The Deal
Chapter 346 : The Deal
Chapter 346: The Deal
Two days later, I left the Sky Ocean Merchant Union.
Jeong Minji, who followed me wherever I went, was now completely absorbed in her martial arts training with the Vermilion Bird Wing Dagger.
Bukri Sehee was focused on mastering her sound arts, and Seok Unjeong was lost in the depths of the Black Tortoise Supreme Yin Art.
Ha Cheollyeong had become so immersed in the Tai Chi Profound Heavenly Sutra that he couldn’t pull himself away.
With no one to interrupt me, I was able to secretly head to Yeongcheon Cemetery.
I could have gone with others, but this task required discretion.
If it had been a battle, I would have mobilized the warriors of the Blood Green Unit, but since this job involved stealing and escaping, it was better to act alone.
However, that was merely my wishful thinking.
“Where are you going?”
Startled, I turned around to find Mo Biyoung standing among the passersby.
“Haha, I just came out for a stroll.”
“Really? Then I’ll join you on this stroll.”
“I want to walk alone.”
“Then walk alone. I’ll just walk behind you.”
When she acted like this, there was no breaking her stubbornness.
“Good grief. Why are you following me?”
“Usually when you sneak off like a stray cat, you’re up to something. Do you think I don’t know you by now?”
We had been roaming the murim together for quite a while, so she probably knew me all too well.
I stepped off the main road onto a narrow path, as if I truly were just going for a walk.
“I really am just taking a walk.”
“Sure.”
Mo Biyoung followed behind me.
The truth was, she had something to say and had been looking for me since we were still at the Sky Ocean Merchant Union.
She had been waiting for a moment when I was alone, and when she saw me leaving, she followed me out.
“Small Sect Leader.”
Hearing the tremble in her voice, I walked beside her, shoulder to shoulder.
“What is it that’s making you hesitate like this, which is unlike you, Instructor Mo?”
“What exactly is something that’s ‘like me’?”
At that, I gave her a small smile.
“What’s the saying that Instructor Mo holds in her heart and lives by?”
She answered immediately.
“‘My fate is mine, not Heaven’s.’ (我命在我不由天)”
I nodded.
“A person who lives with those words in her heart, believing her fate belongs to herself and not the heavens, is one of integrity and courage. The more I live, the more I see people resemble the values they hold in their hearts. You, Instructor Mo, are wise and brave—a person who fears nothing.”
“You flatter me too much.”
I smiled again.
‘Not at all. You’re the one who burned all your passion and life to rebuild the Heavenly Central Sect. My words are not exaggeration nor flattery. They’re simply history.’
“Encouraged by your words, I’ll speak. On the road to Shaolin with the Sect Leader before, I encountered Zhao Qiansheng of the Blood Demon Castle.”
“I heard about that. I heard rumors of your impressive feats.”
“There’s one thing I didn’t mention at the time.”
“What is it?”
“At that time, one of Zhao Qiansheng’s subordinates was a man named Mo Baek.”
“And?”
“I found out that Mo Baek is my blood relative.”
The unexpected revelation made me flinch in surprise.
“I was told both your parents passed away. So… is he your grandfather?”
Mo Biyoung nodded.
“Are you certain?”
“Yes. He knew both my father and mother’s names exactly. His surname is the same as my father’s. And although my childhood memories are faint, his appearance was very similar to my father’s.”
Given all that, it seemed highly likely he really was her grandfather.
“That’s astonishing. To think Instructor Mo’s grandfather is from the Blood Demon Castle… Then your father may have been from there too.”
“Yes. My mother told me that if I were ever left alone, I should find Mo Baek of the Blood Demon Castle. So it must be true.”
She spoke in a rather serious tone.
“That’s not what matters. What matters is that Mo Baek said something at the time, and people from the Shangguan Clan, the Hongchang Sect, and the Mount Song Ak Clan heard it. I think it may cause problems.”
“What did your father say?”
“He told me not to worry. That I’m a member of the Heavenly Central Sect. But you know how the murim is. If there’s any flaw, people will seize on it and try to bring you down. Without a doubt, they’ll use this to pressure the sect.”
“I respect my father’s wishes. But if he tries to cast you out, I’ll fight him. No… if the murim dares to use this to persecute you, I’ll fight the entire murim. I cannot stand by and watch anyone in our sect be wronged. Especially not you, Instructor Mo. Even if I must fight all of murim, I will. So don’t worry. This isn’t something open to negotiation.”
As I stood firm in protecting her, something hot welled up inside her and rose to her throat.
Looking at her, I thought to myself.
‘You are someone who deserves to be protected. In my previous life, I failed to do so… but in this life, I will.’
Mo Biyoung lowered her head, her eyes growing warm.
I tried to hold it back, but a teardrop fell with a plop onto the top of my leather shoe.
“If I end up causing trouble... I’ll leave.”
Truthfully, all those long words had been leading to this one line.
At that, I responded with a scowl.
“If you say that, I won’t forgive you. Instructor Mo, whether we live or die, let’s do it together.”
That was the exact phrase Mo Biyoung had wanted to hear.
Words that swept away her weakened heart and all her worries in one go.
She felt deeply grateful.
Grateful that someone thought of her as someone precious.
Grateful that there were people who treasured her.
‘I’m not particularly exceptional, but I’ll live for the Heavenly Central Sect, for the Sect Leader, and for the Small Sect Leader.’
After hearing my words, Mo Biyoung made up her mind.
Trying to shift the heavy mood, she changed the subject.
“Then what is the saying you keep in your heart, Small Sect Leader?”
She asked, since she had never heard it before.
“You’ll probably be disappointed.”
“No, tell me.”
“The words I keep close are something Cao Cao once said. ‘宁我负人，无人负我(영아부인 무인부아).’”
These were the words Cao Cao said to Chen Gong after killing Lü Boshe—better I betray the world than let the world betray me.
“Hohohohoho!”
Mo Biyoung burst into hearty laughter at that.
“That’s such a Small Sect Leader kind of line. It’s exactly the spirit needed in the murim.”
The murim was not only a place of righteousness and chivalry.
It was a realm teeming with schemes, betrayals, greed, and desire.
She recognized it as a declaration of the will to survive in such a world.
And silently, she murmured to herself.
‘If the Small Sect Leader is Cao Cao… then I’ll be Xiahou Yuan.’
I hadn’t known she had been struggling so deeply with this.
So I explained the reason I was heading to Yeongcheon Cemetery, hoping to ease her concerns.
“You were planning to go alone to the meeting spot where Hong Ayul of the Heavenly Demon Sect and Man Inhwa, the Young Mistress of Ihwa Palace, are trading? You really think they’ll come without guards? They’ll be heavily protected. What if you got caught? You could have at least brought Young Master Jong.”
“What’s there to worry about, when Instructor Mo is here?”
Hearing that, she gave me a sharp look, though not displeased.
“You didn’t use to be like this. You’ve gotten too sly, Small Sect Leader.”
Seeing her lighten up again, I felt relieved and jokingly teased her.
“So when are they making the trade? Don’t tell me they’ve already come and gone.”
She asked worriedly, seeing that no one was around at the cemetery.
“This place becomes deserted after the time of Yushi (酉時). They wouldn’t make the deal when there are people around. If we wait here a while, they’ll come.”
The two of us hid near a hill overlooking the Yeongcheon Cemetery, keeping watch.
From here, we had a full view of the entire graveyard.
While we waited in silence, Mo Biyoung, feeling the stillness grow awkward, asked a question.
“What kind of people are Lady Bukri and Lady Jeong?”
Long ago, a carrier pigeon letter addressed to the Sect Leader had arrived, and Mo Biyoung had been the first to read it.
She had frozen completely, unable to move.
Because of what was written in the letter.
It stated that Bukri Sehee and Jeong Minji would be accepted as disciples.
She had long wondered why the contents of that letter had shocked her so deeply.
Unfortunately, she had spent her entire life training in martial arts at the Heavenly Central Sect and had never come to understand romantic feelings.
She had only interpreted her emotions as a kind of regret that someone she had known for a long time was now going to someone else.
She had thought she simply liked Yong Hwarin, not that she loved him.
But after Yong Biyang left for Shaolin, she came to realize that she truly did have feelings for him.
She hadn’t known while still at the sect, but once he left, his face began to linger constantly in her mind.
It wasn’t just her—Jong Seok felt the same.
Because Jong Seok deeply wanted to see his sworn brother again, her own actions didn’t seem odd to others.
Eventually, even the Sect Leader noticed and sent them to Yong Hwarin because their longing was so obvious.
Still, Mo Biyoung hadn’t clearly realized the nature of her feelings toward him.
Even saying she would become Xiahou Yuan if he were Cao Cao stemmed from those emotions.
Xiahou Yuan had once gone to prison in Cao Cao’s stead when he was imprisoned for offending a county magistrate as a child.
He remained loyal to Cao Cao until his death in the Battle of Hanzhong.
Mo Biyoung didn’t expect to be as close to him as Xiahou Dun, who had access even to Cao Cao’s sleeping quarters.
She simply resolved, like Xiahou Yuan, to sacrifice herself for Yong Hwarin.
“They’re people who wouldn’t hesitate to lay down their lives for me. And I’m willing to do the same for them.”
“There’s an old saying: a wife and children are like clothes. But your life is tied to the hundreds of lives in the Heavenly Central Sect, so please take better care of it.”
I smiled gently at her words.
“Instructor Mo, you know, after living a bit, I’ve come to realize something. What haunts a man the most is failing to protect the people he loves. That regret lasts until the end of your life. So I intend to give everything I have to protect the ones I love and those who love me. And, in my opinion, that saying about wives and children being like clothes only became popular because monarchs considered loyalty the greatest virtue. Even if the king or dynasty changes, the people continue to live. But for me, my family and loved ones are more precious than any king or monarch.”
Mo Biyoung let out a small chuckle.
“You sound like someone at the Half-Cycle Stage.”
“Hahaha, I’m just saying that for me, someone I love is never ‘just clothing.’”
“So in the end, you’re saying those two are people worth dying for.”
“Exactly. I hope you also find someone good, Instructor Mo.”
I meant it sincerely, but her expression hardened.
“I’ll live alone for the rest of my life. I’ve devoted my life to the prosperity of the Heavenly Central Sect.”
“Oh dear, Instructor Mo… the sect’s future lies with me and Kijoong. You deserve to find someone and be happy.”
I truly meant it.
In my previous life, she was someone who died after dedicating herself to rebuilding the sect until the very end.
I didn’t want her to suffer that again.
This time, I wanted to protect her.
To see her live happily.
“If I ever find a partner, I’ll be the one to choose. And if there’s no one I like, I’ll live alone forever.”
Seeing her speak so firmly, I gave a bitter smile.
‘Instructor Mo is someone who deserves to be happy.’