Sword God Reborn

Chapter 197 : Were you a merchant?

Neung-heo stared at Cheon Mubaeck.

Even without peeking at the color that could be seen beyond his face, he could recognize the emotion contained in his gaze. A complex emotion of admiration, absurdity, and so on.

Cheon Mubaeck said bluntly.

"What's with that look?"

"Lord."

"What."

"Tell me honestly. Did you only hold a sword in your previous life?"

"Are you talking nonsense after eating a hot meal in the morning?"

Despite Cheon Mubaeck's pathetic reaction, Neung-heo still stared at Cheon Mubaeck.

"There's no way you only held a sword. Right. You must have been a merchant too. It's not like you're Lu Buwei, otherwise how could you receive the black meteorite iron that was only known as a legendary metal?"

"It's just a small lump."

Neung-heo let out a hollow laugh as if it were absurd.

"That probably doesn't even exist in the imperial palace. Even ordinary meteorite iron is a metal that all the craftsmen and martial artists in the world go crazy for, but black meteorite iron! I didn't even know such a thing existed. Can you even make a weapon with it?"

"A little black meteorite iron was used as one of the materials when Gan Jiang and Mo Ye were made."

"Gan Jiang and Mo Ye? You mean Gan Jiang and Mo Ye of the Spring and Autumn period? How do you know that? It only remains in literature. There's nothing that has been passed down, right? Isn't it just a legend?"

"I know because I used it once. It was quite useful."

"..."

Neung-heo closed his mouth firmly. He could not continue his words at Cheon Mubaeck's casual tone.

Neung-heo, who had been silent for a long time, scratched his head.

"Damn it. I feel like a fool for actually believing this. Well..."

"I told you it's up to you whether you believe it or not, right?"

"Keung."

Neung-heo swallowed a groan.

In fact, who would believe it? The fact that he was a reincarnator who had lived countless reincarnations.

Moreover, all his reincarnations were great martial artists who had left a huge mark on the martial world.

'Tsk. The atmosphere at that time was really like that.'

Neung-heo glanced at Cheon Mubaeck. The appearance that was on a different level from usual was clearly imprinted in his mind.

An intense eloquence that was difficult to describe.

A pressure that made it difficult to even approach, look at, or breathe, completely crushed the surroundings.

If it hadn't been for the immortal energy of Soyong, whom he had held in his arms, Neung-heo would have fainted while watching from the outside.

It was on a different level from the pressure that was crushing down with an enormous internal energy.

'Can a person have that much weight?'

Neung-heo's face hardened.

While following Cheon Mubaeck, he had faced countless masters at close range.

The Shaolin abbot, the Mount Hua sect leader, the Wudang sect leader, the Fighting Ghost, Gwak Yong, the grand head of the Zhuge Clan, Zhuge Seon, and even the Sword Empress.

In addition, the leaders of the Unorthodox Alliance, Dokgo Pae, the River King, and the Great Strength King.

Not only that. He had also faced the enormous masters of the Blood Demon Valley.

The momentum and weight they emitted were on a different level.

Was it just because Cheon Mubaeck was stronger? Was it because Cheon Mubaeck was more outstanding? Was it because the internal energy that Cheon Mubaeck had was denser and purer?

No.

'He's not a person.'

Neung-heo felt so.

A weight that a person could never have.

It was the weight of the name of time that had been accumulated countless times. A weight that was formed by the overlapping and overlapping of a distant time that was incomprehensible.

The sorrow that erupted from within it pierced Neung-heo's entire body.

'He repeats his life to see the end of the sword?'

It was hard to believe.

But if he did not believe it, how could he explain the appearance of Cheon Mubaeck that he had seen that day?

Neung-heo, who had been thinking for a long time, suddenly raised his head.

"Damn it! I don't know. Lord, I'll just serve you as before."

"...Why are you like this again?"

Neung-heo, who did not care about Cheon Mubaeck's dumbfounded reaction, shook his head and waved his hand.

"Reincarnation, whatever, I don't know. Anyway, the lord is Cheon Mubaeck, and I'm following him whether I like it or not. What's there to change? I'll just do as I always have."

"As you always have?"

"Without any manners."

Cheon Mubaeck clapped his hands as if in admiration.

"Wow. Our Neung-heo. Amazing. To think that you're so good at self-objectification, much more than I thought. You're new every time I see you."

"I've always been better at everything than you think."

"Right. Seeing you talk back so diligently, I also feel that you're amazing."

Neung-heo was still calm at the ambiguous words that were neither a ridicule nor a compliment.

Cheon Mubaeck felt a sense of comfort in his heart.

'Keung. If I had made a mistake, a heart demon might have come.'

When he recalled the time he had killed the Poison Demon, Cheon Mubaeck felt as if he were venting the anger in his heart.

The anger that had been accumulated over countless lives without his knowledge might have settled like a heart demon.

'To think that the guy who found out my truth would be this guy.'

If someday.

The time had come when he had to reveal the truth to get rid of the heart demon.

He would have probably confessed to Cheon Yuhwa or Cheon Mungyeong, that is, his family.

Because the secret of repeating reincarnations was not something that could be shared carelessly.

But of all people, Neung-heo.

"Damn it."

"Why are you suddenly cursing?"

"Because it's absurd."

"It's me who's absurd, Lord. You took the black meteorite iron from the Sword Empress, and not only that? You were even introduced to a reclusive craftsman in Shandong?"

"What about it? If she gave me the black meteorite iron, shouldn't she naturally introduce me to a craftsman who knows how to refine it?"

"Wow. They say you become shameless when you live long. I see that old sayings are not wrong."

"There's also an old saying that if you don't know your place and act up, you won't live to your full lifespan. Do you want to check?"

"Ah, by the way, what did you talk about with Jongri Hong?"

Cheon Mubaeck clicked his tongue at the sight of him changing the subject so naturally.

The guy who had bowed his head with his tail between his legs when he had been scared a little at first, had now become quite bold.

"Still, I'm much older in terms of face value, so to say that my head has gotten bigger is a bit..."

"That's enough. I'm tired of playing word games with you for no reason. I've looked into the whereabouts of the next sacred object."

Neung-heo tilted his head.

"Does he just tell you that meekly?"

"What can he do if he doesn't tell me? If I say one word, his neck will be cut by the Sword Empress."

"..."

Neung-heo's mouth was agape and he stared blankly at Cheon Mubaeck. A tone that was a mixture of admiration and sarcasm flowed out.

"Wow... in the midst of that, you found another weakness."

"A weakness, you say. If it weren't for me, it would have been a situation where the name of his sect would have been smeared with shit."

Neung-heo could not refute. Because it was not a wrong statement.

In any case, in the end, Jongri Hong could not escape the pursuit safely.

Not only the Yugeom Emperor's Zhejiang martial world, but also the Sword Empress had chased him, and the Poison Demon had been watching from afar.

It was something that could not be prevented from his identity being revealed. So it was not a wrong statement that he had received a great favor from Cheon Mubaeck.

"In the martial world, if you receive a favor, you must repay it. Isn't it cheap to repay the favor just by telling me where the next sacred object is?"

...Why are you forcing him to repay the favor?

Neung-heo clicked his tongue. He felt a little sorry for Jongri Hong.

"...Tell me honestly. How many times have you lived as a merchant?"

"I only held a sword."

"Well. If you bargain with a sword, it's the best bargaining method in the world. I understand. That's the secret of a great merchant."

Paak.

Neung-heo's face was slammed into the floor. After hitting the back of his head hard, Cheon Mubaeck touched his hand.

"You sometimes do an important job of making me realize that my body can move before my reason."

"Keueueung. I'm sorry."

Only after being hit once, Neung-heo became quiet.

"So where is it? The sacred object."

"Shandong."

"Shandong? Oh?"

Neung-heo's eyes widened.

"That's a relief. To fix that broken sword properly, you have to go to Shandong and meet a craftsman. We can go there on the way."

"Right."

"So, are you going back to Henan after finishing this one thing?"

"For now."

A smile suddenly appeared on Neung-heo's lips.

Knowing why, Cheon Mubaeck smiled.

"Let's finish it quickly and go. The father has to be there when the child is born."

"Hehehehe. It would be better if it's a boy, right?"

"Right. If a daughter who looks like you is born, that would be a bit pitiful for the child."

"..."

It was not that, but since Neung-heo was about to become a father, he would have to stop traveling the martial world and go back then, right?

'Although I caught the Poison Demon, it's a cell organization. There's nothing I can do.'

If he had his way, he wanted to strike the center of the Blood Demon Valley and get rid of it, but it was not that easy.

But he had already achieved a lot. Hadn't he led all the Blood Demon Valley in this Zhejiang Province to hell?

Henan, Shaanxi, Hubei, Chongqing, and even Zhejiang.

He had annihilated the Blood Demon Valley in as many as five provinces.

Even the top executives, the fifth and sixth stars, had been miserably killed in Hubei.

He had also killed the Poison Demon, who was not a member of the Blood Demon Valley.

Now the Blood Demon Valley's power had clearly shrunk by at least half.

Moreover, since the Poison Demon, who could have made improvements to the Bidara, was dead, they would not be conspicuous for a while.

Rather than pursuing them unreasonably, it would not be bad to return to Henan and take a short break.

'There are also things to sort out gradually.'

He had felt quite a lot while competing with the Sword Empress.

'A draw against the Sword Empress.'

That was Cheon Mubaeck's thought.

But...

'If I fight the Sword Empress, whose ominous nature of the Heavenly Defeat Star has exploded, with all my strength?'

Well.

It would be a fight that would end only when one of them died.

If it were the divine might of the Azure Sky Sword God, he would have been able to suppress her without killing her.

The realm that Cheon Mubaeck was looking at was a higher place than that.

Because it was the sword's edge that he had not been able to go to even after repeating countless reincarnations.

He still had to be more greedy.

'I'll have to think about it after obtaining the sacred object.'

According to what he had heard from Jongri Hong, a legend had been passed down in Jongnam that the Sword Immortal, Lu Dongbin, had ascended to immortality after receiving the rites of the Five Sacred Objects, or more precisely, the four sacred objects and the divine maiden.

'Perhaps the decisive reason why Lu Dongbin ascended to immortality was in the sacred object.'

In any case, since Cheon Mubaeck was also continuing to move in a new direction with the power of the sacred object, it was something he had to find.

"Since the demons are now busy hiding themselves, there won't be any fights even if we go to Shandong. We'll fix the sword, find the sacred object, and go straight to Henan."

"Hehe. I understand."

Cheon Mubaeck decided to move slowly.

Although he was in the middle of recuperating from a dantian injury, it was not a very serious internal injury.

In fact, it had been a long time since he had shaken it off and had gotten up.

But he had not left because he still had work to do.

"How is the Black Assembly?"

"It seems that the leader's position has narrowed a bit due to the failure of this matter."

Even if Zhejiang Province was close to Fujian, it was only on the map, and it would take a considerable amount of time to actually exchange contact.

Moreover, to know the detailed news inside, even more so.

But Cheon Mubaeck was sitting in Zhejiang and could know the situation of the Black Assembly as if he were looking at the palm of his hand.

"Guk Jihum says he will take this opportunity to firmly grasp it... should I not give a separate order?"

"That's enough. He's a guy who took control of the Hao Faction single-handedly. It won't be difficult to cook and eat Wang Jeonyu. He'll do well on his own without me saying anything."

Since Guk Jihum was the inspection hall master of the Black Assembly, Cheon Mubaeck had a clear grasp of the situation.

This time, even though Wang Jeonyu had led the fleet himself, he had been defeated.

And he had been seriously injured by the Sword Empress.

Naturally, his position as the leader could not help but narrow.

Wang Jeonyu, whose position had narrowed, had no choice but to put his heart and soul into recruiting not only the river pirates but also other forces.

Considering that, he would have to recruit Guk Jihum, who was in the important position of the inspection hall master of the Black Assembly.

Guk Jihum would use this situation appropriately and would be able to sufficiently take control of the Black Assembly.

"Ah, send those to Dokgo Pae."

"You mean the Gu poison?"

Neung-heo's expression contorted.

The Gu poisons he had obtained after killing the Poison Demon and searching his bosom.

"I have no use for them anyway."

"That guy, Dokgo Pae, will misuse this."

"Let him. That's what I want."

"What?"

Cheon Mubaeck said calmly.

"It's a false loyalty obtained with something like Gu poison. How long do you think that will last?"

"...!"

"He's a guy who has seen the effect of Gu poison properly. He has no choice but to keep using it. But that will become a noose that tightens his neck."

"That's it?"

"You're from the Unorthodox Alliance. Think about it."

"...Ah!"

Neung-heo, who had been thinking for a while, his eyes widened.

"To the Unorthodox Alliance, loyalty is the most important value."

Of course, for a skeptical person, no, for the vast majority of the Unorthodox Alliance, it was just words, and there was almost no tendency to live and die for loyalty in reality.

But one of the big reasons why Dokgo Pae had built up the huge Unorthodox Alliance sect, the Great Dragon Gang, was that he had united his subordinates under the name of brothers.

But what if such a Dokgo Pae was using Gu poison to forcibly receive loyalty?

Not only that.

"They'll suspect. 'Did he plant a Gu poison in me too?'"

"Right. Loyalty is broken. No matter how much it's just a symbol, it's more dangerous because of that. The big brother, Dokgo Pae, used Gu poison? The Unorthodox Alliance will break as it is."

"..."

Neung-heo was silent.

"It's a headache if the Unorthodox Alliance unites. It's better for it to be torn apart and divided as time goes on."

Dokgo Pae had wished for the integration of the Unorthodox Alliance his whole life.

But if it was seen that such an Unorthodox Alliance was being torn apart, he would do anything to integrate it desperately.

Then the evidence that he had used Gu poison would surely be revealed to the eyes of the other Unorthodox Alliance members.

That was.

"The dissolution of the Black Assembly..."

Neung-heo's voice trembled slightly. In an instant, goosebumps ran down his spine. To talk about the dissolution of the Black Assembly, the Unorthodox Alliance coalition, while sitting here. And at the fact that it was quite possible, Neung-heo could not even speak.

Although a slightly awkward atmosphere was formed, fortunately, it was ventilated by the voice that was heard from outside.

"Young Master Cheon, a guest has come."

It was none other than the Yugeom Emperor who had appeared and had said so.

Not a servant, but himself.

Cheon Mubaeck tilted his head.

A guest? To the extent that the Yugeom Emperor would come all the way here to announce it?

"An emissary has come from the Righteous Alliance."

(End of Chapter)