The Genius Youngest Disciple of the Wudang Sect

Chapter 30

"A hundred silver taels...! I don't have that kind of money..."

"You don't? Then you have to choose one of the two. Well."

"One of the two?"

"You clearly said with your own mouth that you're a disciple of some Unorthodox Faction called Sura Gate, right? Then you'll either be dragged to the branch of the Martial Arts Alliance."

"Th-That's the only thing!"

Gwak Yongbu shouted in surprise.

In a place like this where the influence of the government office doesn't reach, the Martial Arts Alliance often takes the place of law enforcement.

Especially when the opponent is not an ordinary thug, but a disciple of an Unorthodox Faction, they step forward more actively.

If he were to be taken to the Martial Arts Alliance, he might be tortured there to extract information.

"If you don't like that, well... you have to die. I didn't want to get my hands bloody, but if I let you live, you'll probably show up again and cause a ruckus."

"Heok!"

He took a sharp breath.

What I just said doesn't suit what a Taoist would say at all, but I lived like this in my past life.

If I thought there would be future trouble, I would kill them without mercy or burst their dantian and destroy their internal energy.

Because that was the way for me, who had no background and no connections, to survive in the martial world.

"If you don't like either, well... pay up."

"But still, a hundred silver taels...!"

The monthly living expenses of an ordinary family that doesn't know martial arts is about two silver taels.

So a hundred silver taels is a truly enormous amount.

In fact, I didn't say that amount thinking that this guy would have that much money.

I had something else in mind.

"Wouldn't that Sura Gate or whatever have a hundred taels?"

"Wh... what did you say?"

"Let's go to your sect. We can ask for the money there. A kind of... hostage exchange, shall we say?"

Suddenly, Gwak Yongbu's face turned black.

He spoke urgently, his lips and hands trembling.

"N-No. If I go, I'll die anyway. Please spare me, my lord!"

The titles are evolving.

When he first saw me, I clearly heard him call me a 'little brat', but now the word 'my lord' comes out naturally.

"Why? Is Sura Gate that scary?"

"Scary, of course. We're not even officially initiated into Sura Gate, we just offered all our wealth and received a few martial arts techniques."

So it was.

No matter how much it's an Unorthodox Faction, there's no way they would have accepted all these old people as disciples.

It seemed they had accepted them with the intention of extorting money and using them as shields in case of an emergency, and had taught them simple martial arts.

"No wonder. For someone who came in so confidently, you're too weak. What kind of confidence did you have to come charging in?"

"......"

He can't answer, but I think I know what he's feeling.

Because even if it's a very basic martial art, the difference between learning it and not learning it is like heaven and earth.

No matter how much of a natural strongman you are, you can't split a rock with your fist, but once you start learning martial arts, it becomes a not-so-difficult task.

He must have lost all sense of fear after lording over other places like a god with that crude martial art.

"Tsk, tsk. That's enough of that. Get up quickly and guide me to Sura Gate. The fact that you came charging in here not long after the Martial Uncle left means it's not that far, right?"

"My lord! Young hero! No, great hero! Please, just not that...!"

"Hoo. You're hopeless."

He just won't listen.

It seems he doesn't grasp what situation he's in right now.

"Mister. Could you go inside the inn for a moment?"

"Ah, I understand."

At my words, the innkeeper hurriedly went into the inn and closed the door.

Thanks to these guys causing a ruckus earlier, all the other customers had already run away.

"Now that I think about it. Obstruction of business too? This won't end with a hundred taels."

I rotated my fists and loosened my wrists.

"Until you feel like talking about Sura Gate or whatever. For now, let's get hit a little."

***

Quite some time had passed.

For about an hour, I did my best to instill manners and etiquette into Gwak Yongbu and his subordinates.

They were all so happy with my education that they all made happy sounds like 'keueo-eo, eu-eo-eo'.

In the midst of that, Gwak Yongbu, being the boss, tried not to reveal the location of Sura Gate for a while, but after a long period of continued education, he confessed everything.

At that time, his face was so swollen that I couldn't even recognize his original face, and it was hard to understand his pronunciation.

How nice would it have been if he had told me earlier? It would have been easier for me to understand.

The place where Sura Gate was located was in a canyon that came out right after going around the mountain adjacent to the inn.

"P-Please keep it a secret that I told you..."

"What did you say? Big guy next to him. Did you understand?"

"Yes. He said to please keep it a secret that he told you, brother."

"Hmph! Why am I your brother."

"Ah, th-the great hero...?"

"It's a little cringey, but it's better than your brother. From now on, you're my interpreter."

"Yes, great hero!"

I said to Gwak Yongbu.

"Is Sura Gate that scary?"

"They're... grim reapers. Grim reapers."

"Grim reapers?"

"If you go there, you won't be able to escape death..."

"He said if you go there, you won't be able to escape death, great hero."

"Really? I don't think so."

Actually, the reason I'm speaking so confidently is nothing special.

'Because I've never heard of them in my past life.'

The Central Plains are wide, and people live everywhere.

And where people live, there are always Unorthodox Factions or thugs who suck the life out of those people.

Most of these scoundrels who prey on these good people either get destroyed in a power struggle with other nearby Unorthodox Factions, or they get destroyed by a passing hero, or in the end, all the common people to be preyed on disappear, and they also naturally disappear.

But very occasionally, they merge and grow their forces, or an unexpected demonic art or demonic person appears and has a great influence on the martial world.

But, Sura Gate? I've never even heard of such a sect.

No, to be honest, I have heard that name. But, if you were to look for an Unorthodox Faction with the name Sura Gate in the Central Plains even now, there would be at least ten.

That's how much of a nobody they are.

'It's also a good opportunity to check my strength.'

Of course, if it were my old body, destroying a small Unorthodox Faction like this would be no problem.

But, my current body, although my understanding of martial arts is high, is still a small kid.

There's nothing like a real battle to grasp how much I can move and what my level is.

"How many people are there in Sura Gate in total? I don't want to hear it in that slurred pronunciation, so from now on, you answer, big guy."

"Yes! Besides us, there are about a hundred people in Sura Gate in total."

"And all a hundred of them have learned martial arts?"

"That's right."

"Who's the sect leader? Is he a famous person?"

"The sect leader is..."

He was answering well, but he suddenly rolled his eyes.

I can guess why he's doing that.

It's probably something like, 'The moment I say the sect leader's name, I'll be killed by Sura Gate's assassins.'

"The moment I say that name, I will become a target of Sura Gate. Great hero..."

As expected.

It was the same earlier, but how can it be so typical?

"What kind of target from a sect that's going to disappear anyway? Aren't you going to say it quickly?"

When I raised my fist, the big guy flinched with a tearful face.

But, no matter how scary Sura Gate is, what can he do? My fist is close, and Sura Gate is far.

He finally opened his mouth.

"It's the Sura Blood Demon, Chae Eung-seok. He uses a martial art called the Sura Saber and single-handedly established Sura Gate, and is in the process of taking over the southern part of Henan Province."

"Chae Eung-seok...?!"

I shouted in surprise at the familiar name.

I've never heard the childish nickname 'Sura Blood Demon', but it's a name I can never forget in my life.

"By any chance, is his hair color slightly brown, and is half of one of his ears gone, that Chae Eung-seok?"

"......? How do you know the sect leader, great hero?"

"Is it really that Chae Eung-seok?!"

At my words, everyone looked at me with wide eyes.

Seeing that reaction, I was sure.

That it was the person I knew.

Well, the name Chae Eung-seok isn't a common name, so I thought 'no way', but to think it's really him.

'To meet that name here.'

Grin—

One corner of my mouth went up without my knowledge.

Because Chae Eung-seok was the very mountain bandit who had brought me to the brink of death when I first entered the martial world after learning the Un Family Sword Art in my past life.

'I don't know why he becomes a Green Forest bandit later... is this also fate?'

It's really too much of a coincidence.

The Unhwi of my past life also met Chae Eung-seok when he first entered the martial world, and now I also heard Chae Eung-seok's name the first time I came out of Wudang.

There's no better opportunity than this to check my skills.

"Alright. I'll give you all a chance to live."

"Th-Thank you, great hero!"

"Guide me to where Sura Gate is."

"Aigoo, great hero! Just kill me instead!"

"Really?"

I slowly raised my fist.

But as if they didn't want to get hit again, the thugs immediately shut their mouths.

"For now, you all kneel here until I come out. This is a matter I need to discuss with my Martial Uncle."

"H-May I ask just one thing?"

"What is it?"

"May I ask what you will do when you go to Sura Gate?"

"Of course, I have to go and crush Sura Gate. How can a disciple of a prestigious orthodox sect just pass by after seeing an Unorthodox Faction? And, Chae Eung-seok also needs to be hit a little."

"......?"

A question appeared in the thugs' eyes.

Because they couldn't even guess what the relationship between their sect leader and me was.

"If even one of you runs away from here, you should know that the rest will all be buried in the ground. So watch each other well."

"Y-Yes!"

Leaving their desperate answers behind, I went back to the inn.

I've finished cleaning up, and now it's time to wait for the Martial Uncle.

***

The Martial Uncle returned to the inn two hours after that.

The sun had already set a long time ago, and a round moon was taking its place in the sky.

I was waiting in the room, but the Martial Uncle suddenly came running back to the room with a clatter.

"Hwi-ya!"

"Martial Uncle. You're here? Did you take care of your business well?"

"That's not what's important, is it? There was a fight?"

"Ah. Didn't you see the thugs kneeling on your way in?"

"I saw them. Did you take care of them all by yourself? Are you hurt anywhere?"

"Yes. It seems they all learned a little martial arts, but their skills were terrible. Of course, I wasn't hurt a single bit."

At my words, the Martial Uncle let out a sigh of relief.

And then he said in an angry voice.

"I heard from the innkeeper. That those are the ones I chased away three years ago? Because I didn't finish it properly, you were almost in great danger. This time, I'll really...!"

"Martial Uncle! Wait a minute. Just take a deep breath and calm your anger."

I raised both my arms and approached the Martial Uncle, calming him down.

As if he didn't expect me to come out like this, he stopped right as he was about to run out and looked at me in an awkward posture.

"I have some information I heard from them, would you like to hear it?"

"Information?"

"Yes. They're not just simple thugs."

"Not thugs? Then what are they."

"For the three years after they were beaten by you, they entered a sect called Sura Gate and received crude martial arts. So, they're now disciples of an Unorthodox Faction."

He was surprised at my words.

But, he wasn't surprised when I said 'disciples of an Unorthodox Faction', but when I said the name of the sect, 'Sura Gate'.

"Did you just say, Sura Gate?"

"Yes. Sura Gate. Is it a sect you've heard of?"

I thought it might be a sect with a larger force than I thought, so I spoke in a slightly worried voice, but the Martial Uncle immediately shook his head.

"That's not it. I heard they just started to grow their forces after being established for the first time three years ago."

"Really? But, you know a lot about Sura Gate?"

At my question, he suddenly burst out laughing.

"Haha... the business I had here was to grasp the current forces of Sura Gate and find out its location. It's a mission that came down from the Martial Arts Alliance, saying that the damage to the common people has been increasing recently."

"Uh... really?"

"Yes. And if their forces are not that large and can be annihilated within a day, then to annihilate them. This is a mission to solve if possible on the way to the Shaolin Temple."

"Haha..."

A hollow laugh escaped me at the truly exquisite mission.

And, a not-so-important question that was in my head was solved.

'The Martial Uncle will strike this place, and at this time, Chae Eung-seok will abandon Sura Gate and run away to enter the Green Forest.'

Sura Gate was destroyed at this time, so I couldn't hear its name in the future.

Everything fits perfectly.

"They came to me on their own and saved me the trouble. It's thanks to you."

"Do you really think it's thanks to me?"

"Yes. If you hadn't caught them, I wouldn't have been able to find out so easily."

I smiled subtly and said to him, "Then please take me with you when you strike Sura Gate."

(End of Chapter)