Episode 231: At Your Age, and You Still Don't Know?
While the Beggar Sect Leader watched, I gazed upon the Sun-Moon Light Stream.
Perhaps because lightning energy had been added to it. Since it had already manifested in the world, I did not want it absorbed into my dantian or dissipated.
I watched the Beggar Sect Leader, who was gripping my wrist, as he appeared bewildered.
“Jaha, at this rate, we’ll all die.”
“Senior, please release your hand and step back. I will resolve this.”
The moment the Beggar Sect Leader stepped back, I smiled faintly, then added the principles of Reverse Heaven to the Sun-Moon Light Stream and converted it into the Light Screen.
“…….”
As the light of the Sun-Moon Light Stream transformed into the Light Screen, a long curtain of light unfurled from both my hands, perfectly deflecting every attack in an instant. It seemed to contain a great deal of internal energy, stretching out long and slender like pulled noodles, then lightly suspended in the air.
The light scattered.
In a sense, this Light Screen was the highest realm of martial arts and ultimate technique that I could achieve across both my past and present lives.
It was regrettable that my hidden ace had been revealed.
Yet because I could not let the Beggar Sect Leader come to harm, I had no choice but to commend myself for converting the Sun-Moon Light Stream into the Light Screen.
The Beggar Sect Leader spoke with a surprised expression.
“How marvelous. I have never witnessed such an ultimate technique.”
“Is that so?”
“What was the technique you displayed earlier?”
“It is the Sun-Moon Light Stream, formed by combining the energies of the Sun and Moon.”
“And what is that light you created by perfectly converting it?”
“I have simply named it the Light Screen.”
“How absurd. Is it a defensive ultimate technique?”
“Yes.”
Since the Three Calamities had called it absurd, it was indeed absurd. Only then did the Beggar Sect Leader look around.
Everyone had turned pale, their complexions gradually returning.
“All of you, sit your asses down. You too.”
When the Beggar Sect Leader spoke to the Cheonmaeng Leader, the entire Cheonmaeng planted their backsides on the ground. Countless martial arts experts sat meekly like schoolboys.
Singae spoke to me.
“Let’s sit.”
“Yes.”
I sat as well, and the Beggar Sect Leader flopped down onto the floor with a thud. Singae spoke to the Cheonmaeng Leader.
“Any dead?”
“None.”
“That is fortunate.”
“Do your subordinates know me?”
The Cheonmaeng Leader looked around at his executives and answered.
“They do not, but they likely have some inkling.”
The Beggar Sect Leader looked around at the Cheonmaeng and said,
“Jugeok, you have succeeded. You’ve become the leader, the Cheonmaeng is excellent, and you seem to have many outstanding talents among your subordinates. You have succeeded.”
“…….”
“There are few juniors who earn money as well as you do. I heard Im Sobaek still receives his monthly salary from the sect, but you do not, correct?”
“Correct.”
“Then even a patriarch of a great family wouldn’t dare flaunt his wealth before you. While in seclusion, I heard news of the martial world. I often heard the lamentable news that spirited juniors occasionally died. I checked for your name among them, Jugeok—wondering what you were doing. It seems you have been well.”
“Yes.”
“You ought to earn money in moderation.”
I looked back and forth between the Beggar Sect Leader and the Cheonmaeng Leader. The Beggar Sect Leader asked the Cheonmaeng Leader again.
“Do you need to earn more here?”
“I will earn in moderation.”
“If they asked me to name the bravest junior in the martial world, you would rank among the top ten. Your temperament is so fierce that I once entertained a brief hope—should I cross blades with the Three Calamities again, perhaps you would have grown enough to claim one of those seats. But what I expected from you was the bearing of a martial artist. Seeing you after so long, I find the head of avaricious merchants sitting before me. Did you enter the martial world to become a grand merchant? How long do you intend to spend cleaning up after merchants?”
The Cheonmaeng Leader fell silent.
The Beggar Sect Leader looked around and said,
“Hey, juniors of the Cheonmaeng.”
The warriors of the Cheonmaeng answered in unison.
“Yes, Senior.”
“I am the Beggar Sect Leader who in days past failed to settle a match with the other two of the Three Calamities. To be honest with you, I am now in a state where I can only fight the Three Calamities one more time. If this old man fights those fearsome ones again, win or lose, how much life do you think I have remaining?”
“…….”
“I wanted to fight my next decisive battle as I am now. If even a single junior were to emerge capable of claiming one of those seats, we might determine the outcome against the Three Calamities. I pondered long. It was not easy to find one. That is why I chose lengthy seclusion—to focus on my disciple, lest I fall behind while other calamities training fiercely leave me in the dust. I had many concerns. If I fall to the Cult Leader and Cheonak later, can you handle those two? Young juniors, I am old now, with but one fight left. Once I endure it in whatever manner I can, the next turn is yours.”
“…….”
The Beggar Sect Leader said to the Cheonmaeng Leader,
“Your turn will also come soon.”
“Yes.”
“If you die at the Cult Leader’s hands while busy hoarding money, where do you plan to spend such vast wealth? Is money that important? Or do you intend to kneel before the Cult Leader and join the cult, so you can preserve at least half your assets? I congratulate you in advance, then.”
The Cheonmaeng Leader answered.
“I have no such intention.”
“Then you plan to meet your end alongside those who fear and follow you, calling you ‘Leader’ and ‘Leader’ with every breath. And you call yourself a fine leader.”
Only then did the Cheonmaeng Leader’s complexion turn deathly pale. He looked like a tiger that had eaten something wrong and suffered indigestion.
The Beggar Sect Leader looked at me.
“One day, I received news that a portion of the Demonic Cult’s forces had appeared and been annihilated. I privately assumed it was either Im Sobaek, the Cheonmaeng Leader, or another king, but word had it that it was the Haomen Lord. No—just who is that? What is the Haomen? I only somewhat knew my disciple, Noshin, but no one truly knew.”
The Beggar Sect Leader asked the Cheonmaeng Leader,
“Why wasn’t it you? Now, merchant junior, try making an excuse.”
“What excuse could there be? There is none.”
The Beggar Sect Leader’s eyes widened for an instant as he struck the Cheonmaeng Leader on the side of the head with his palm. With a dull thud, the Cheonmaeng Leader’s head lolled, and an icy silence flowed.
The Beggar Sect Leader said,
“The wealth and honor you built are not because you are exceptional. You must always remember the sacrifices of your subordinates. Is it a leader’s role to lead them all to die alongside you? Without your subordinates, you are not even a leader. You whelp, at your age, and you still don’t know? Without beggars, I am not a sect leader either. If all the men of Haomen die, Jaha is not the Haomen Lord. A leader…”
“…….”
“If we all fall to the Cult Leader, the martial world will vanish. How can that be the martial world where countless heroes, warriors, and gallants intertwine and live? It would become nothing more than converts of a bizarre religious order. You would become sycophantic ministers to be executed by a tyrant. Whether you live in the dark path or strive in the righteous path, you must not forget the greater cause. You worthless cur, do you want to die by my hand? People don’t even know me well. Would you like to be the first sect leader in history to be beaten to death by a beggar?”
The Jecheon Alliance Leader barely managed to answer.
“No. I would rather die at the Cult Leader’s hands than be beaten to death by you, Senior.”
The man who could smack the Jecheon Alliance Leader upside the head within the Jecheon Alliance—that was the Beggars’ Sect Leader.
Holding back my laughter, I watched the two of them share this heartwarming exchange. If the worst came to pass, I had planned to massacre eighty percent of the Jecheon Alliance, then flee and lend my strength to Im Sobaek, but even my plan had gone awry.
In truth, I could not tell right away whether my plan had been ruined, or whether these people and I had all been given another chance at life.
In any case, I respected the Beggars’ Sect Leader’s words as well.
The Beggars’ Sect Leader spoke in a somewhat angry tone.
“Juniors!”
“Yes, Senior.”
“If I were to face one of the other Three Calamities today or tomorrow, who among you intends to step into the empty spot? Will Im Sobaek step forward? Whoever it is, your Alliance Leader is hopeless. He won’t step forward because there’s no money in it. Once, along with Im Sobaek, he was a man with the nickname Fierce General, a name utterly unsuited to the jianghu. How did he end up like this? As his subordinates, did you do nothing but flatter him? Your responsibility is not light either.”
This time, the Beggars’ Sect Leader scolded the warriors of the Jecheon Alliance as a group. While all their faces flushed red together, I finally cut into the Beggars’ Sect Leader’s words.
“Senior, I will take that spot.”
The Beggars’ Sect Leader roared at me.
“You’re lacking! You wouldn’t last even a hundred exchanges before throwing out the Sun-Moon Radiant Heaven, and then the Cult Leader and Cheonak would join forces and extinguish it in an instant. I fought while watching the sun and moon rise in turn several times against the other Three Calamities. Jaha, do you think you can handle that?”
“Mm.”
The Beggars’ Sect Leader rose to his feet and spoke while looking at the Jecheon Alliance and me.
“Only when the jianghu is intact can there be an Alliance Leader and alliance members. Do not spend your years like fools. Alliance Leader Ju.”
“Yes, Senior.”
“Let us meet again.”
Perhaps the Jecheon Alliance Leader was still human after all, because he stood and said,
“Senior, please stay for a few days before leaving.”
“Save that nonsense for your subordinates. I’m going. If you want to protect your men, train more harshly. What else does a man who does no work have to do? Your skill hasn’t changed much from back when you used to get beaten.”
“I will devote myself to training.”
The Beggars’ Sect Leader looked at me.
“Sect Master, let’s go.”
“Yes.”
I stood side by side with the Beggars’ Sect Leader and slowly walked through the Jecheon Alliance’s main camp. Just then, laughter sounded from the air, and No Sin flew over to stand beside the Sect Leader.
When I glared at this clueless bastard under the heavens, No Sin shut his mouth.
The Beggars’ Sect Leader said,
“Why are you only coming now?”
No Sin answered,
“Because you’re too fast, Master. Is it already over?”
The Beggars’ Sect Leader let out a sigh and said,
“I ran for the first time in a while, and now my back hurts.”
“Ah!”
No Sin cried out frivolously, then moved in front of the Beggars’ Sect Leader and crouched as if offering him a piggyback ride.
“Get on, Master. You’ve worked hard.”
Suddenly, I acted on impulse. After tapping No Sin on the shoulder, I jerked my chin and said,
“Brother No Sin, move aside.”
“Why?”
“Sect Leader, get on my back.”
The Beggars’ Sect Leader nodded.
“Very well. I should try riding on the Hao Sect Master’s back too.”
When I offered my back, the Beggars’ Sect Leader climbed on as if mounting Red Hare, pressing down with crushing weight. In an instant, I felt sweat bead on my forehead and said,
“What the? Why are you so heavy, Sect Leader?”
The Beggars’ Sect Leader said in an icy tone,
“Shut up and run. You brat, everything is training. No Sin, lead the way.”
“Yes, Master. Hahahaha. Looks like the stupid Sect Master thought carrying someone was a joke. Let’s go, Hao Sect Master.”
As No Sin ran ahead, the Beggars’ Sect Leader tapped the back of my head from behind.
“Chase him, you brat. Let’s see how good your qinggong is.”
“Huh?”
When I grew flustered, the Beggars’ Sect Leader’s weight became even heavier. In that instant, he wrapped his left arm around my neck and issued a threat.
“Good. Shall I train your qinggong a little? If you fall behind, I’ll choke you. Go.”
“Wait a moment.”
“You want to negotiate? If you catch up to No Sin, I’ll let you go. Move.”
In that instant, the Mad Monk came to mind.
What the hell was this situation?
My past life, in which I had been tormented by the Mad Monk, flashed before my eyes like a revolving lantern. Somehow, it felt as if the role had shifted from the Mad Monk to the Beggars’ Sect Leader.
‘This is a bit…….’
Thinking about it, with my current skill, there was no way to avoid a chokehold from one of the Three Calamities. Fortunately, the Beggars’ Sect Leader’s weight grew a little lighter.
“This much should do, right? Hurry and catch up.”
I let out a long sigh, then used qinggong to follow No Sin. As I gradually increased my speed, praise tinged with admiration from one of the Three Calamities continued from my back.
“Oh…… you’re fairly fast, aren’t you? Still, you’re not faster than No Sin. How will you ever catch up like this?”
As I ran, I asked the Sect Leader,
“Where is Brother No Sin going?”
The Beggars’ Sect Leader answered with a laugh.
“How would beggars like us know? Run. Run, Hao Sect Master!”
Perhaps he thought the distance had grown too great, because No Sin turned back and taunted me.
“What’s this? Your qinggong is awful. I thought you ran pretty well back in Musan Gorge.”
This damn master and disciple were threatening and mocking me at the same time.
These filthy beggar bastards…….
I roared at No Sin.
“You beggar-like bastard…….”
No Sin answered with a snicker.
“I’m not beggar-like. I’m already a beggar. You stupid Sect Master.”
Even the chief of the beggars riding on my back seemed dumbfounded, because he burst into hearty laughter. With no way to break out of the situation, I used qinggong while being held captive by the beggar master and beggar disciple.
Who am I, and where am I?
I offered them kindness and got captured by beggars.
Life is beggar-like shit…….