The Mad Dog Inspector of the Martial Alliance

Chapter 128 : Lamp of Enlightenment (2)

The Zhongli Mountain and River Record is a book that records the numerous anecdotes that Master Zhongli personally experienced while traveling all over the Central Plains, and it introduces the products, climate, and folklore of each region with a flowing writing style and beautiful illustrations.

Since it was such a popular book, it sold like hotcakes, so for those who knew how to read and draw, making a copy of it was an excellent pastime. Jang So-gil had also enjoyed copying it when he was learning to read, and since it was also considered a must-read for merchants, he had read it carefully several times.

In that Zhongli Mountain and River Record, there is this passage.

[Originally, it is best not to do something that is wrong. However, there is no one who has never made a mistake. If you have made a mistake, it is best to admit it, reflect on it, apologize correctly to the other person, and make sure that the same thing does not happen again. To the one who has caused damage, to the one who has suffered a loss, give appropriate compensation. At this time, the more excessive the compensation, the better. A half-hearted compensation is worse than not giving any at all. The dregs left in the heart will later become a boil and return as a much larger negative influence. Only a generous compensation can calm this down even a little, so when you give, give boldly.]

There was a person here who was practicing that maxim. Jang So-gil, with trembling eyes, asked the Lamp of Enlightenment.

"Do you happen to know the Zhongli Mountain and River Record?"

"It's my favorite book. I've read it over a thousand times."

"I thought so."

Jang So-gil closed his mouth. Originally, no matter what he was given, he had planned to shout, 'Do you think this is enough compensation!' and throw it away. It was something Jang So-gil was very good at, to make the situation worse, to enlarge the argument, to move the stage to a public place, and then to turn a matter that would have ended with a bonfire into a forest fire to squeeze out a larger compensation.

To move to the big stage as he wanted, he first had to throw the compensation that the Lamp of Enlightenment had presented on the floor. He had to give him a huge embarrassment and make him feel ashamed.

But he couldn't do that. He just couldn't refuse it.

"The Plum Blossom Divine Pill."

What were the elixirs of the world? First, one could think of the Shaolin Temple's Great Return Pill and Small Return Pill, and there was also the Wudang Sect's Taiqing Pill and the Nan Yue Beast Palace's Fierce Bull Live Bezoar Pill.

Either way, they were symbols of prestigious sects that boasted of history and tradition. They were rare elixirs, of which there were only a few in the world, recorded as second-grade in the Sima Collection Record.

A legendary elixir that might appear once in a hundred years.

The Plum Blossom Divine Pill also proudly held a position as such a precious and rare elixir.

The symbol of Huashan, the treasure of Huashan.

The Plum Blossom Divine Pill. The Plum Blossom Divine Pill!

The value of this small box was a thousand gold. It was not a metaphor, but you could really earn a thousand gold easily.

There would not be a single person in the world who could throw away such a Plum Blossom Divine Pill.

"Ugh, ugh."

Jang So-gil, looking at the box held in his hand, tried his best to get angry.

It was a futile effort. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get angry. His expression relaxed without him realizing it.

He tried to force down the corners of his mouth, which were rising on their own, but it was no use.

His mouth hung open. The soul of a merchant who knew the value of wealth well had surrendered.

This was the action of a person who perfectly understood and practiced the teachings of the Zhongli Mountain and River Record. Jang So-gil realized that he had fallen into a trap.

A trap was a true trap only when it made you fall into it even when you knew it was there. Just as one would hang the plump hind leg of a pig to catch a hungry tiger, the Lamp of Enlightenment had hung the Plum Blossom Divine Pill to catch Jang So-gil.

"Why, don't you like it?"

"I'm in trouble because I like it too much."

The Lamp of Enlightenment laughed heartily, like a good person. To Jang So-gil, the tail of a monster hidden behind that laugh was visible.

This was a bribe. A solicitation. He had thrown a bait to weave a connection. It was a high-level scheme to create an alliance at once while covering up his own mistake.

If he accepted it, he would be in a completely symbiotic relationship with Huashan from now on.

Jang So-gil had read the Lamp of Enlightenment's true intentions in one go, but he could not take his hand off the box.

"Keuheuk..."

Until now, it had been an ordinary cooperative relationship, so he could have cast Huashan aside at any necessary moment. But after receiving this, that would become impossible.

He knew. He knew, but. He wanted this so much.

It wouldn't increase his internal energy as radically as when he had eaten the Fierce Bull Live Bezoar Pill. Originally, the more you repeatedly consumed a powerful elixir, the less effective it became. Since he wouldn't eat it in a crazy way like then, he wouldn't be able to see that much of an effect.

But his internal energy would increase by at least twenty years. How could twenty years of internal energy be a laughing matter?

Yang Gwan's internal energy was about that much. He could increase his internal energy in one go by as much as a member of the Ten Dragons had accumulated. If he didn't feel greedy, that would be the Buddha, the Primeval Lord of Heaven.

For Jang So-gil, who lived by greed and desire, it was an impossible thing to refuse this.

'Even if I accept it, it won't cause a big problem.'

Hadn't he pushed away Zhongnan's hand and taken Huashan's hand from the beginning? Since it was a situation where he had decided to take Huashan's side and had taken action, it could be said that they were in a semi-alliance state from then on.

It was very resentful that the Lamp of Enlightenment had looked down on Jang So-gil's life and had judged it here and there.

But if the compensation for that was the Plum Blossom Divine Pill, he couldn't help but smile even while being resentful.

It was no good. He was caught. He liked it too much.

Jang So-gil, with a smile, quickly put the box in his bosom.

"I've received it well. Let's make it as if it never happened."

"That fellow, the way his head spins is very good to see."

The Lamp of Enlightenment also rarely showed a disappointed expression.

Because giving away the Plum Blossom Divine Pill was not his original intention.

He should have saved him right away when Ha Hu-yeong and Jang So-gil were fighting. But since the young fellow was so amazing, he had been watching in admiration and things had come to this.

They say that in old age, the only interesting thing is watching your grandchildren's antics. It had been a long time since he had seen such an interesting antic, so he had been watching without realizing the passage of time.

It was also true that he had left him alone because he didn't really care if Jang So-gil died. That was honestly half jealousy.

It was a natural feeling for a person who held the position of a sect leader to want to have a good talent when he saw one.

He had been envious of the Thunder and Lightning Sword Emperor, Gumen Long, and had thought about just letting him die, but to think things would turn out like this.

In the end, curiosity and envy were the problem. Wasn't it because of this personality that he hadn't been able to ascend to heaven yet?

This was clearly the Lamp of Enlightenment's mistake. Yeondeung himself knew that very well.

"Ugh. The Plum Blossom Divine Pill."

"T-to give the Plum Blossom Divine Pill to an outsider of the sect..."

Song Baek and Hyeonam Jin-in let out a groan. Since it was the sect leader's decision, it was commendable that they did not object, but what was a waste was a waste. The people who knew the value of the Plum Blossom Divine Pill best were, of course, the people of the Huashan Sect. It was only natural that they would look at it with an expression as if their intestines were being cut.

Inwardly, the Lamp of Enlightenment also felt like he was dying from the waste. But as the Zhongli Mountain and River Record said, you shouldn't be stingy with compensation. If you're going to give something, you should give it generously.

That fellow was the inspector of the Martial Alliance and the de facto number two. It would be troublesome if there were any lingering feelings. So he had to appease him by giving him the Plum Blossom Divine Pill.

As a bonus, he could also use it as a token of their alliance. If he could completely make the inspector an ally, it was a business worth trying.

Of course, thinking so did not make the Plum Blossom Divine Pill any less of a waste.

"..."

"..."

The Lamp of Enlightenment, who was enduring his sore stomach from the waste.

Jang So-gil, who couldn't get angry even though he should.

The two of them, glancing at each other, gave a soulless smile.

The distinct smell of a formidable enemy. He was a fellow who would be a pain in the ass if he were made an enemy.

Such a person should not be made an enemy, but should be kept as an ally.

The Lamp of Enlightenment and Jang So-gil shook hands in reconciliation.

"I really don't want to be an enemy of the Huashan Sect."

"I also don't want to be an enemy of yours."

The tacit agreement was over.

The Huashan Sect and the inspector of the Martial Alliance had no lingering feelings for each other, and in the subjugation of the Four Black Alliance, there was not a single grain of misunderstanding or distrust.

Everything had proceeded according to plan, and Huashan and the Martial Alliance had shown a wonderful harmony, like a tongue in one's mouth.

That was enough for the words that would be known to the public.

"Do you agree?"

"I agree."

It was a very beautiful agreement.

* * *

The extermination of the Four Black Alliance, which the Martial Alliance Leader had ordered, was also now in its final stages. Since they had lost their central point, Ha Hu-yeong, it was only natural that the groups of the Black Way would scatter like sand.

If the pillar collapsed due to an earthquake, the house would also collapse. If that happened, you could see an interesting sight. Even a cockroach, as if it were a life, would run out of the house like a shot to try to live.

The same thing was happening in the Four Black Alliance.

"Tell them to tighten it up well."

"As you command."

The second-class martial artist of the Martial Alliance, who had received Jang So-gil's order to narrow the encirclement, ran with the order. The place he was heading to was the formation of the martial artists who had gathered after seeing the proclamation.

Jang So-gil turned his head and looked at the people of the Huashan Sect. They were being treated a little differently from the other martial artists. It was partly because they had stood at the forefront, but also because they were in an alliance that would coexist in the future, unlike the martial artists who would gather for a while for the subjugation of the Four Black Alliance and then disperse again. Their level of trust was different, and their use was also different.

Song Baek, who had been biting his fingernails and thinking about the Plum Blossom Divine Pill, cleared his throat after feeling Jang So-gil's gaze.

"Ahem. Ahem. The work is coming to an end, so what should we do now?"

"While they're narrowing the encirclement from the outside, ransack the headquarters of the Four Black Alliance. Sweep up everything that could be of value, and if there are any documents, don't leave a single one behind."

"They should also get some profit. Is it okay if we take everything?"

"Well, you see. The martial artists who have gathered now are a mix of healthy guys and unhealthy guys, you know?"

"Healthy guys and unhealthy guys?"

The answer to Song Baek's question came from Hyeonam Jin-in. He said calmly.

"The healthy guys are the ones who have come to make their names known and to firmly establish the justice of the world, having been swayed by the proclamation."

"Then what about the unhealthy ones?"

"They must be the unorthodox sect who have approached with the intention of taking the place of the Four Black Alliance when it disappears. Because the business of the Four Black Alliance is attractive."

Song Baek nodded his head, but Jang So-gil shook his head. The explanation was a little insufficient.

"Of course, I'm also concerned about the seeds of the unorthodox sect, but the guys who have other thoughts are also a problem."

"Other thoughts?"

"Think about the business methods of the Four Black Alliance."

Theft and smuggling, laundering of stolen goods, bribery brokerage, violence solicitation, assassination, and so on. They were all criminal acts.

Jang So-gil smiled bitterly.

"The characteristic of a crime is that it makes money. Just because they are martial artists of the orthodox sect doesn't mean they really see money as a stone, so someone must have been in a cooperative relationship with the Four Black Alliance."

"The orthodox sect, with the Four Black Alliance...?"

"Even if it's not an alliance, they might have used them once or twice. But anyone who does business keeps a ledger. If you don't have a ledger, you can't even grasp your own business, so there are almost no cases where you don't keep one at all. If it's a matter that needs to be handled secretly, you keep a secret ledger. Now. What would you do if your sect's name was written in the ledger of the Four Black Alliance?"

"I'd have to erase it no matter what."

"That's right. So there must be someone who has secretly joined the group under the pretext of participating in the heroic journey to erase their own name. It would be stranger if there wasn't. So to stop them, we have to monopolize the spoils and the documents. The rewards can be distributed after the cleanup is over. For now, the priority is to block the information."

It made sense. Song Baek nodded his head, and Hyeonam looked at Jang So-gil with a strange eye.

"You're really experienced. Are you really a martial arts novice?"

"I'm a novice in the martial world, but I have enough experience in the commercial world. So I'm saying, Hyeonam Jin-in. Does the Huashan Sect have a business relationship with the Four Black Alliance?"

"No."

"If you do, just say so. It'll be easier to bury the fact of the transaction."

"I really don't."

"Then there's nothing to be shy about, so we can just beat up any sect that gets in the way."

How many would be caught in the transaction ledger of the Four Black Alliance? Which prestigious orthodox sect would be involved? Just thinking about it was a very interesting topic.

As Jang So-gil smiled, Hyeonam Jin-in asked back.

"Wait, Inspector. Who will guarantee that you won't manipulate that ledger?"

"That's a very sharp point."

"I've heard about your relationship with the Sichuan Tang Clan. Frankly, wouldn't it be strange if the Tang Clan's name didn't appear in the transaction ledger of the Four Black Alliance?"

If the name of the Sichuan Tang Clan was there, he would announce it. If it wasn't there, he would announce it even if he had to forge it. It was the easiest way to make the Sichuan Tang Clan a public enemy of the martial world.

When Hyeonam pointed that out, Jang So-gil held his stomach and laughed.

"That's right, but I don't want to do that."

"Why?"

"A tower built on lies will soon collapse. A tower must be built on truth to last a thousand years."

Hyeonam, feeling a sense of vertigo at the answer, closed his mouth.

(End of Chapter)