Sword God Reborn

Chapter 239 : You thief...

The Righteous Alliance had erected its pavilions on the very spot where the Red Dragon Faction, which had once held considerable power in Chongqing, was brought down.

Naturally, it was unsettling to build on a place where the blood of so many had flowed.

However, Gwak Yong, the leader of the Righteous Alliance, was not a man to be afraid of such things.

He was the kind of man who would burst out laughing, saying that if a vengeful ghost were to appear, he would cut down even its spirit.

"I'd rather a ghost appear."

Even the great Gwak Yong could not have predicted the current situation.

Gwak Yong sighed heavily and clicked his tongue.

"The site is bad... the site."

He knew that secret organizations were being formed among the young martial artists, but he had no way to stop them.

The more he tried to restrain them, the more the characteristic rebelliousness of youthful hot-bloodedness erupted.

These were not simply immature martial artists.

He could not look down on those who had gathered, drawn by the banner of resisting the Demonic Path, as mere hot-blooded youths.

They were those who had made a firm resolve to fight fiercely without succumbing to the great Demonic Path.

Even if their seniors in the Orthodox Path advised them, would the advice of those who were no different from old-fashioned scolds even enter their ears?

They were a generation that sprang forth more fiercely the more they were pressed down.

Yes, he could understand that much.

Gwak Yong himself had been like that in his youth, and he had come to his senses after meeting the Azure Sky Sword God.

"There's a power struggle even among the secret organizations they've made themselves."

The incident that happened this morning was just that.

The secret organizations formed by the young martial artists had clashed.

Of course, it wasn't a large-scale fight, and only a few martial artists had clashed, but the Righteous Alliance was naturally in an uproar.

With the Blood Demon Valley, which had been quiet until now, recently revealing itself, what could be more terrible than an internal conflict erupting?

"Tsk, tsk. My authority doesn't work on the young ones."

Have I gotten old, too...

As Gwak Yong muttered so, Zhuge Seon, who was opposite him, smiled bitterly.

Even he, the chief strategist, had no brilliant solution.

"That's just the way it is. Just as they fear someone a few years older more than an adult."

"That's why Cheon Mubaeck, that bastard, has to come."

The role of suppressing the youthful hot-bloodedness and gathering them together was not something the current leadership could do.

Of course, they could do it by force, with their authority, power, seniority, and experience.

"Then they would rebel even more. They might even leave the Righteous Alliance and try to form a new alliance among themselves."

Gwak Yong's eyes hardened.

For Zhuge Seon to say that was no different from saying that a similar sentiment was brewing at the grassroots level.

"Is it that serious? Strategist?"

"For now, it won't be a big problem. The issue is that the atmosphere is slowly forming not only among the young martial artists but also among the middle-ranking members."

"Those Blood Demon Valley bastards had to go and run wild..."

With several sects having been devastated recently, dissatisfaction was brewing among the middle-ranking members of the Righteous Alliance as well.

The middle-ranking members themselves were the heads or elders of small and medium-sized sects.

Not knowing when their own sects might be attacked, they wanted the Righteous Alliance to take the initiative and strike the Blood Demon Valley first.

"But we can't do that. The situation beyond the borders is unusual."

"...You mean there are demonic forces other than the Blood Demon Valley beyond the borders."

"They might even be more powerful than the Blood Demon Valley. The sects beyond the western borders all disappeared six months ago."

"..."

"Furthermore, the Beast Palace of the Southern Man has sealed its gates."

"..."

"What if the demonic forces that have consolidated their power by organizing, seizing, and extorting the forces beyond the borders enter the Central Plains and join hands with the Blood Demon Valley?"

"...Hoo."

Gwak Yong squeezed his eyes shut.

He had been proud when so many sects had gathered under the banner of the Righteous Alliance.

He had thought they could annihilate the remnants of the Demonic Path right away.

The problem was, they weren't 'remnants'.

"In 40 years, they have completely revived. How is that possible? They were clearly crushed."

"The Demonic Path is a world of the strong-eat-the-weak. It's possible if an absolute powerhouse who can become a focal point is alive."

"The Heavenly Demon, you mean..."

Gwak Yong let out a long sigh.

Zhuge Seon nodded with a grave face.

"On the other hand, in the Orthodox Path, the Azure Sky Sword God ascended to immortality, and the Sword Venerable, who was to succeed him, also disappeared. That is the reason why the Martial Alliance became a mere formal coalition after the Righteous-Demonic War."

"We need a new focal point."

Gwak Yong had thought he could be that focal point.

A hero of the Righteous-Demonic War, a warrior who fought alongside the Azure Sky Sword God, with powerful martial might and authority.

But now he felt it keenly.

He, who could not even control the hot-bloodedness of the young martial artists, could not be the focal point.

But there was one person who could do it now.

The person who had gathered all the leaders of the Righteous Alliance in one place, and the one who received the overwhelming support of the young martial artists.

"Cheon Mubaeck, why is that punk taking so long to get here?"

"My daughter went to fetch him, so he should be here soon."

"I hear he's stopping by Henan on his way..."

Suddenly, Gwak Yong's face turned playful.

"When a young man and woman travel together, well, feelings that weren't there might just sprout."

"...Alliance Leader."

"Hohoho. What's wrong? The Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero would be a son-in-law desired by all sects."

"My daughter is still young. Marriage, you say?"

"Aish, young? How long will you think of her as a child in your arms? Tsk. If I had a daughter instead of a tomboy like Cheon-hu, I would have held on tight."

Zhuge Seon showed a look of discomfort.

"Cheon Mubaeck, it's true that he is a prodigy of the age, but he's a person with hundreds of cunning snakes inside him."

"Hohoho... hundreds is too much. Besides, isn't it better than being blunt and thoughtless? I'm starting to wonder if you're jealous, Strategist."

"Alliance Leader!"

"Hahahat."

Gwak Yong laughed as if he found it amusing. As he grew older, he had started to show more and more childlike aspects.

Zhuge Seon sighed as he thought of Cheon Mubaeck.

'He's a fellow who seems to have a centuries-old monster inside him.'

His father, the Grand Clan Head, had acknowledged his eye for people.

Zhuge Seon, who trusted his own judgment, somehow didn't like Cheon Mubaeck.

'Hmph. This is my gut feeling. It's not because I couldn't even talk to my daughter Seol-ah after telling her not to follow him.'

As he was thinking that, the news he had been waiting for finally arrived.

"The Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero and Young Lady Zhuge have arrived at the Righteous Alliance!"

* * *

In the reception hall for guests, Cheon Mubaeck and Zhuge Seol-ah sat together.

"The atmosphere is certainly strange."

"Right? It feels a little more intense than before I left."

"There's a strange dissatisfaction among the middle-ranking members, and the young ones seem antsy to fight right away."

"I know. It's probably because they haven't actually fought the Blood Demon Valley. They're dreaming of being heroes of the Righteous-Demonic War themselves."

"This way, the young ones will..."

"...Ugh, I just got goosebumps."

"Why is that?"

"You're younger than me, and you're even among the youngest of the martial artists outside, Young Master. But you talk like that."

"My body may be young, but my mind is old, I suppose."

"Well, you've already had several big fights while traveling the martial world, Young Master, so it's understandable that you'd be mentally exhausted."

As she said that and looked at him with pitiful eyes, Cheon Mubaeck was at a loss for words.

His mind really was old...

"But it seems there are factions among the martial artists too?"

"That's right. It's natural for martial artists to gather around the rising stars who can act as leaders."

"From what I saw just passing by, it seems there are roughly three factions."

"You figured that out just by passing by?"

Zhuge Seol-ah's eyes widened.

Indeed, how could one notice the factions just by simply passing by?

But Cheon Mubaeck was able to grasp it to some extent with his outstanding qi sense.

By grasping the way their qi subtly overlapped and clashed, he could feel the rough outlines of several groups.

"That's right. To be precise, there are four factions."

"Four?"

"The faction centered around Gyo Mun-cheok of the Gyo Mun Clan, which wields great power in Suzhou of Jiangsu Province; the Tang Clan from Sichuan, which is small in number but fiercely independent, with Tang Su-gun; Hwangbo Sung of the Hwangbo Clan of Shandong; and the Anhui faction, made up of martial artists from Anhui Province. Those are the four factions."

"What about the young martial artists from the Nine Sects One Union?"

"They naturally don't have a separate faction. The current leadership of the Righteous Alliance are all their seniors and masters from their sects. They follow the Righteous Alliance's events well."

"I see. Then what about the Anhui faction?"

"It's the faction of the Namgung Clan, which has not yet joined the Righteous Alliance."

Cheon Mubaeck's brow narrowed.

"They haven't even joined, but they're forming a faction within the Righteous Alliance and wielding influence?"

"Because it's the great Namgung Clan."

Zhuge Seol-ah shrugged.

The other sects of the Nine Sects One Union were slowly joining the Righteous Alliance or were in the stage of sounding out joining.

However, among the Five Great Clans, the Namgung Clan had not even broached the subject of joining.

With the power of the clan alone, they were the hegemon of Anhui Province and a giant of the Central Plains martial world.

"Who knows. If you lead the young martial artists, Young Master, the Namgung Clan might come too."

"Are you talking about the Great Young Master of the Namgung Clan?"

The Great Young Master of the Namgung Clan.

The one who was called the only dragon who would lead the next generation of the martial world before Cheon Mubaeck's appearance.

"The rising star originally called the Sword Dragon was the Great Young Master of the Namgung Clan."

With Zhuge Seol-ah's detailed explanation, a rough picture formed in Cheon Mubaeck's mind.

'Somehow, the Namgung Clan's influence might have been more involved in this matter.'

Then, suddenly, Zhuge Seol-ah's hair came into Cheon Mubaeck's view.

To be precise, it was her long, unbound hair.

'Come to think of it...'

Was it during the Wolya Faction's attack?

Zhuge Seol-ah had created a formation while avoiding the assassins' gazes.

"Did you lose your hairpin then?"

"Ah? This?"

Zhuge Seol-ah made an awkward expression and twirled her lustrous, ebony-like hair with her finger.

"I didn't have any tools in a hurry. There were no suitable branches or stones nearby, so I broke my hairpin in half and made the formation."

"I see."

Zhuge Seol-ah had always maintained her hair neatly tied up.

Having rushed to Chongqing on horseback after the Wolya Faction's attack, she probably hadn't had time to get a new hairpin.

"That's good."

"Huh? It's good?"

Zhuge Seol-ah tilted her head. What a random thing to say.

'Does he perhaps like long, unbound hair?'

Then maybe I should have worn it down sooner.

Cheon Mubaeck took out a small box from his bosom. It was a box wrapped in high-quality silk.

Zhuge Seol-ah's pupils trembled.

"What is it?"

"The artisans in Henan were all backed up with orders, so it was late."

"What is it?"

Cheon Mubaeck silently unwrapped the silk and opened the box.

"......!"

It was a graceful butterfly hairpin that seemed to exude an elegant fragrance.

The corner of Zhuge Seol-ah's eye trembled. It was something she had never expected.

Moreover, recognizing the appearance of the item, Zhuge Seol-ah's heart pounded.

It was similar to the butterfly hairpin she had recommended to Neung-jo as a gift before.

Only the material was different.

"The ones sold on the market were of poor quality. I sought out the artisans of Henan and had it made from white jade."

"You're... giving this to me?"

"It's not something I ordered for myself, is it?"

Zhuge Seol-ah's face flushed red. Cheon Mubaeck, also feeling somewhat awkward at her reaction, glanced away.

From the World Discussion in Shandong, he had received help in more than one or two things, so this was his own way of rewarding her.

But as Zhuge Seol-ah stared at the butterfly hairpin for a long time without a word, Cheon Mubaeck cautiously asked.

"You don't like it?"

"No, it's not that..."

"Try it on."

Zhuge Seol-ah took a deep breath and picked up the butterfly hairpin.

The process was so careful that the silence that fell conveyed a strange emotion between them.

Zhuge Seol-ah's slightly excited breath made the atmosphere in the hall strange.

It was then.

"Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero, and Seol-ah. You've finally arri... hmm?"

Zhuge Seon, who opened the door and entered, had his face contort greatly.

Zhuge Seol-ah, not just blushing, but with her face completely flushed.

Her slightly upturned gaze held a light of infinitely warm affection.

The strange atmosphere that filled the hall.

Zhuge Seon's face turned pale. His voice trembled on its own. His eyes blazed with fury.

The first words that came out of Zhuge Seon's mouth as he looked at Cheon Mubaeck were not words of welcome.

"You thieving bastard...!"

Zhuge Seon's stomach turned upside down.

(End of Chapter)