“……Hahaha. I must be cursed.”
Gao Jiying laughed hollowly.
Again, again it had been shattered to pieces.
The buildings he had barely managed to repair were now half-destroyed to the point where restoration was impossible, and the few halls that had still been intact were burned black by the fire.
He had thought they were finally about to take off, but the situation was not smiling upon him.
‘When will I ever restore this?’
His head throbbed.
It was a moment when his father’s figure, who used to rant that people of the Kangho were shameless bastards, resonated deeply within him.
“Haa.”
A deep sigh escaped him naturally.
Especially seeing the current situation, his future looked bleak.
Perhaps because they had suddenly put out a fire in the middle of the night, everyone was exhausted.
Looking at the servants lying flat on their backs, panting heavily, he shook his head.
‘I must not waver.’
He was the Merchant Lord; he couldn’t just sit idle like this.
“Chief Manager.”
“Did you call for me?”
As if he had been waiting for the call, the chief manager standing behind him bowed his head.
“Please contact the Youxiang Inn.”
“Understood.”
The chief manager nodded and stepped back.
“I’ll be spending some money for a few days.”
While calculating the lodging expenses to put up the servants at the Youxiang Inn.
“Merchant Lord!”
A voice calling from afar could be heard.
The moment the chief manager was about to turn his head at the voice.
Whish!
A fierce wind swept over him.
The moment he blinked against the gust of wind, a man with a massive build appeared before him.
It was Xiandao.
Gao Jiying was quite surprised by Xiandao, who had suddenly appeared like a ghost, but without showing it on the outside, he opened his mouth.
“I am glad you are safe.”
At Gao Jiying’s greeting, Xiandao gave a bitter smile and spoke in a low voice.
“I am sorry for being late to respond. Since we knew Baigui Castle was targeting the Bifeng Merchant Group, we should have been more vigilant than before...”
“Not at all.”
Gao Jiying shook his head.
“How could this be True Person Xiandao’s fault? It is all the doing of Baigui Castle, those despicable bastards. I am only grateful that you saved our merchant group.”
“Merchant Lord...”
Xiandao was so impressed by Gao Jiying’s flexible response that he was at a loss for words. At that pure reaction, Gao Jiying smiled.
They say if the upper water is clear, the lower water is also clear; Xiandao’s reaction was just as pure and admirable as the Plum Blossom Swordsmen.
‘My choice was not wrong.’
Just as his trust in the Huashan Sect was growing.
“Is Xian alright?”
“Xian?”
Xiandao tilted his head, then recalled that Chijian’s real name was Gao Xian.
“If you mean Chijian, his internal injuries are severe right now, so Tianhui is treating him.”
Gao Jiying’s face turned pale.
To him, who was ignorant of martial arts, the term ‘internal injury’ sounded terrifying.
“I-Is he alright?”
“It’s not a serious internal injury. It’s just...”
“His Qi and blood were just twisted.”
A voice interrupted in the middle.
Tianhui looked at Gao Jiying, whose complexion had turned white, and added in a low voice.
“And he has almost recovered now.”
“I-Is that true?”
“If you’re really that curious about his condition, he’s in the courtyard, so you can go see for yourself.”
Gao Jiying was about to run, but hesitated.
“Benefactor. This grace...”
“That’s enough, so please hurry and go.”
“Y-Yes, I understand.”
Xiandao looked at Gao Jiying’s back as he ran off panting and smiled with satisfaction.
“He is a good father.”
Then he looked at Tianhui.
“But you finished the treatment faster than I expected.”
“I just straightened out his twisted Qi and blood and gave him an internal injury medicine, and he got better, that’s all.”
“Hmm, is that so.”
Xiandao found it strange but nodded.
Since he didn’t know medicine, he simply thought Tianhui was right.
However, if the one who heard those words wasn’t him, but the Medicine Hall Master, he might have had a fit.
To treat twisted Qi and blood this quickly, one had to be proficient in both acupoint sealing techniques and medicine.
“It seems the internal injury medicine the Medicine Hall Master provided before leaving was highly effective.”
Xiandao smiled and scratched his head.
It reminded him of the argument they had when the Medicine Hall Master insisted on packing the internal injury medicine.
‘I should thank the Medicine Hall Master next time.’
Around the time he was making an absurd misunderstanding.
“But, Fourth Uncle.”
Tianhui called him.
“Hmm? What is it?”
“Where is Baigui Castle?”
Instantly, Xiandao’s brows furrowed.
“Why do you ask?”
“Why do I ask?”
Tianhui looked at him with a puzzled expression and added fierce words.
“I need to crush them.”
“Crush... them?”
“If we just stay idle like this, it seems we’ll only keep getting pushed around, so I’m planning to pull them out by the roots entirely.”
Tianhui’s words were straightforward.
Xiandao asked in panic.
“Don’t tell me you’re planning to go to Baigui Castle?”
“If we’re going to pull out the roots, we have to.”
“B-But the opponent is Baigui Castle and Baisha Shen. It’s not a place where you can just go recklessly and expect things to work out.”
“So you’re just going to leave them be?”
“No, I have no intention of doing that. Since Baigui Castle touched the Bifeng Merchant Group, war has begun. However, I will inform the Huashan Sect and receive reinforcements before fighting the war.”
Xiandao’s words were logical.
The opponent was a massive sect called Baigui Castle.
Thorough preparation was necessary.
However.
“Then it will be too late. What if the Bifeng Merchant Group gets attacked again while we wait?”
“That is...”
Xiandao’s words got stuck.
He had only thought about the Huashan Sect and had momentarily forgotten about the Bifeng Merchant Group’s future.
“Wouldn’t it be better to just raid Baigui Castle as quickly as possible?”
“That may be true, but...”
Xiandao agreed without realizing it.
If the rumor that these guys were defeated reached the ears of the Baigui Castle Lord, it would be the start of an all-out war.
But if they moved to Baigui Castle a step ahead before the rumor spread...
‘Just like we were caught off guard earlier, the enemies might also be caught off guard and fall...’
While Xiandao was pondering for a moment.
“Are you just going to let your enemies off the hook?”
At Tianhui’s following words, Xiandao made up his mind.
“...Alright.”
“Then where is Baigui Castle...”
Tianhui, having persuaded Xiandao, was about to ask about the location of Baigui Castle right away, but.
“I will tell you on the way.”
“What?”
Tianhui tilted his head.
Then, recalling something, he frowned.
“Are you going too, Fourth Uncle?”
“What do you mean? Were you planning to go alone?”
“Yes. Aren’t you returning to the Huashan Sect?”
“No. I will follow along.”
“Fourth Uncle, you need to take the Plum Blossom Swordsmen and return to the Huashan Sect.”
“They are already youths who can each stand on their own, so isn’t it enough even if I don’t go along?”
Tianhui’s eyes narrowed.
Actually, Xiandao following along was just a bother to his free wanderings in the Kangho.
‘I guess it can’t be helped.’
However, arguing was even more bothersome, so Tianhui let out a sigh and spoke.
“Sigh, do as you please.”
“Hahaha, don’t worry. For all my looks, my skills have improved more than before.”
Looking at Xiandao, who was under some delusion, Tianhui shook his head.
“I will tell them to return to the Huashan Sect first.”
Around the time Xiandao made that decision.
“No! That’s suicide!”
Hao Wuzhen came running and shouted.
As if he had heard the entire conversation, he immediately intervened and started meddling.
“Is Baigui Castle just some ordinary sect? It’s one of the Liuhuang Gates of the Heisha Society! It’s no different from taking on our sect, let alone the Huashan Sect, so for just the two of you to raid it, does that even make sense!”
The excited Hao Wuzhen’s words were quite unfiltered and much faster than usual.
Xiandao blocked him and said.
“It has already been decided.”
“But, Senior Xiandaozi. At this rate, my junior disciple will end up on the road to the Yellow Springs.”
“That will not happen.”
“...”
Hao Wuzhen looked at Xiandao with a complicated expression and chewed his lip hard.
“Then I will go along too.”
Hao Wuzhen said with a resolved face.
“No, there’s no need for that.”
However, Tianhui flatly refused.
“This matter is a grudge between our sect and Baigui Castle. You have nothing to do with this matter.”
Xiandao immediately added an explanation.
But Hao Wuzhen did not give up.
“...I cannot afford to lose my close friend’s disciple as well.”
“It’s a matter where you might die.”
“I know.”
Hao Wuzhen’s voice was firm. Seeing Hao Wuzhen’s eyes filled with resolve, Xiandao nodded and looked at Tianhui.
“It seems it would be good for him to come along.”
“...Haa.”
Tianhui let out another sigh.
It was already too late to stop him.
In the end, he had no choice but to say the same words he had spat out to Xiandao earlier once again.
“Do as you please.”
Then, turning his head sharply, he asked.
“Then, at least tell me the information about Baigui Castle.”
Hao Wuzhen immediately answered those words.
“If it’s information, a Hou Gai of the Gaibang has been wandering around this area recently. If you ask him, you’ll be able to find out more in detail than from me or Senior Xiandaozi.”
* * *
In front of the Youxiang Inn, a beggar was groveling before a middle-aged man.
“Hahaha, so what happened to those attackers?”
“What do you mean what happened to them.”
The middle-aged man crossed his arms with an arrogant expression, even though it wasn’t something he had done.
“When that person swung his sword just once, all the attackers died.”
“H-Haha...”
The beggar, Zhen Gai, smiled awkwardly and internally cursed the middle-aged man.
‘I thought I could get some information since he’s a servant of the Bifeng Merchant Group, but I didn’t know he’d be a guy spouting nonsense.’
No matter how much of an expert one was, there was a limit. How could dozens of people die instantly from a single swing of a sword?
To do that, one had to have reached at least the Wuji Realm, no, the Heavenly Martial Realm.
‘Even in Shaanxi alone, the only ones who have reached the Heavenly Martial Realm are the Baigui Castle Lord, Baisha Shen, and the Zhongnan Sect’s Sect Leader, just two people.’
However, he didn’t reveal his true thoughts. If he did, he felt like he wouldn’t be able to get even the little bit of information he might obtain.
‘Endure it, endure. Right now, there are at least dozens of guys besides me aiming for the Hou Gai position in the Gaibang. If I hand over this information, I’ll be one step closer.’
Calm his mind, he once again displayed the servile attitude he had become familiar with while living as a beggar and rubbed his hands together.
“Then, by any chance, might I know the Daoist title of that Daoist?”
“Cough, that is a bit important, so...”
The middle-aged man cleared his throat and turned his head.
At the same time, with half-closed eyes, he subtly glanced at him.
‘Damn it! He’s trying to squeeze blood from a stone!’
Realizing the meaning of that gaze, curses rose up from within him, but a servile smile was already plastered on his face.
He rubbed his hands together as fast as flies on dung and pleaded.
“My Lord, I too am out of money...”
“Then it can’t be helped.”
As the coldly speaking middle-aged man tried to turn around, Zhen Gai bit his lip.
Then, hastily rummaging through his clothes, he took out what he had preciously saved and said urgently.
“I-Instead, how about this?”
Seeing the sparkling accessory, the middle-aged man snatched it with a hand gesture as fast as lightning.
“Hmm, this is...”
Examining the accessory in detail, the middle-aged man let out a loud cough.
“Cough, I didn’t want something like this...”
Twitch—
A vein popped on Zhen Gai’s forehead.
“I-Is that s-so...?”
“Hahaha, where was I in my story again?”
“You stopped at... telling the Daoist’s title, sir.”
“Ahem, right. So, that person’s Daoist title is...”
The middle-aged man’s story continued.
After spilling everything that had happened at the Bifeng Merchant Group for about two quarters of an hour, the middle-aged man rose from the ground.
“...That’s how it happened. Right?”
Looking at the sky where dawn was breaking, the middle-aged man spoke with an “oops” expression.
“The time has already gotten this late. I will be going now.”
“Oh, please go safely. My Lord.”
The middle-aged man waved his hand and left.
As he walked away, Zhen Gai spat in the direction he was heading.
“Damn it! An unbearable bastard. Having nothing else to suck dry, he completely drained the wealth of this lowly beggar.”
Zhen Gai spat out the anger he had been holding back.
After vomiting out his grievances for a while, perhaps feeling a bit relieved, he dusted off his straw mat and turned around.
“It was ‘Tianhui’, right?”
“When did he ever find out the name?”
At the suddenly heard voice, Zhen Gai flinched.
There were three Daoists in front of him.
The young man in the center approached slowly and twisted the corner of his mouth.
“You’re Zhen Gai, right?”