Episode 326. Im Sobaek's True Intent (眞意)

I looked at Im Sobaek, who appeared tired.

It was no small feat that he had overwhelmed the Sword Emperor after exhausting his mental strength conversing with Gongsongwol and appearing before them having stayed up all night. It made me realize that his mental fortitude was just as impressive as his martial arts.

It was only natural that he looked exhausted.

Now that the Alliance Leader had driven the point home by telling the Sword Emperor to challenge him first, there likely wouldn't be anyone shameless enough to challenge him at this gathering. Im Sobaek slowly walked across the sparring stage, looking around at the assembled crowd.

"I too have something to say regarding the Alliance Leader's reappointment."

"……."

Today, Im Sobaek was unusually intent on meeting people's gazes as he moved about, as though trying to memorize every face.

"If I ever feel my strength is no longer what it once was, I will retire. But that time is not now. You all saw with your own two eyes, but……."

Im Sobaek gave a slight smile, and the heroes smiled as well.

"To have competed in martial arts at a gathering of Kings and juniors without anyone being seriously injured—this itself is a joy."

Im Sobaek pointed at the Military Sword King and the Sword Demon.

"The contest between the Sword King and the Sword Demon was especially splendid. The two were aggressive to the point of looking like fierce generals of a nation, yet the essence of their sword techniques was different. Where else could one find such rivals?"

Im Sobaek then called out the Kings one by one.

"Namgung, Seomun, Fist King, Blade King…… Even Senior Sword Saint and Senior Shin Geuk, who are not present here, and even the man newly called the Blade Emperor. Even if I do not like you, should great trouble befall you, I intend to gather my subordinates and special task force and rush to your aid. Just as I recently rushed to Dongho to aid the Lord of the Hao Sect and his party."

Im Sobaek looked at me.

"I fought against the forces of the Foremost of the Four Great Evils alongside the Lord of the Hao Sect, Master Yukhap, Mongnang, and the Sword Demon. When I mentioned that I would soon hold a contest with the Kings, those four I had aided came to the Martial Arts Alliance."

Only now did Im Sobaek inform the heroes of the reason why the Four Great Evils were at the Martial Arts Alliance.

Im Sobaek looked around his surroundings and spoke.

"Therefore, the Lord of the Hao Sect deliberately intervened in the contest, made a commotion, and fought because he was afraid people might get hurt were I to face the Kings in succession. That is why he stepped forward intentionally."

Wow, Im Sobaek was suddenly defending me.

Im Sobaek spoke.

"I hope the Kings will understand this and not look upon the Lord and his party with too much displeasure."

Even as he spoke of matters that were hardly worth mentioning, a silence hung in the air…….

We all simply watched Im Sobaek's expression.

"I am prepared to rush to the aid of those gathered here should they fall into danger. That is the reason the Martial Arts Alliance exists. However, I am not a perfect Alliance Leader. I am merely a successor who has yet to reach the prestige of the Sword God (劍神). So it is true that I wish to receive the help of the heroes as well. There are Alliance members here. There are also subordinates who passed the entrance exam and those who came with recommendation letters from sects or great families. If you consider them allied forces, I have not refused them without good reason. Know that protecting the Martial Arts Alliance is ultimately the same as protecting your senior and junior martial brothers, brothers, masters, and disciples. Surely none of you believe that I will remain the Alliance Leader for a very long time until I die?"

"There are none."

Im Sobaek sought the owner of the voice.

"……It's possible though. Who is it?"

The Lust Demon quickly bowed his head.

"My apologies, Alliance Leader."

Im Sobaek looked around and spoke.

"In any case, I will hold this position for a long time, so I hope the next Alliance Leader will be taken up by juniors belonging to the younger generation. So what if the Alliance Leader is a bit young? The young lord of the Seomun family, the young lord of the Namgung family, the disciple of the Fist King, the children of the Military Sword King…… Your era has not yet come. I hope that you will surpass not only the masters and family heads who are now called Kings, but me as well. If the juniors who were here today surpass us, that too is a blessing for the martial world. I was pleased with the contest held at this gathering today. Strategist Gongsong."

"Yes, Alliance Leader."

"Precisely on this day next year, and every year on this day, I wish for the heroes to gather and hold a contest. Can you prepare for it?"

Gongsongwol took a fist-and-palm salute.

"I shall prepare for it."

Im Sobaek nodded.

"Repair the wall that the Blade King destroyed as well, prepare even more food to suit the guests' tastes, and arrange proper quarters where the guests can rest comfortably, so that I may invite them again as I did today."

This time, answers flowed out from here and there simultaneously.

"Yes, Alliance Leader."

"If it comes to that, you too will be unable to idle away your days like me. Should I ever retire or meet my death due to ill fortune, I want you to gather as you did today and select a new Alliance Leader through a contest of the Righteous Path."

I listened to the Alliance Leader with my arms crossed.

"Hmm……."

"Therefore, the gathering next year and the year after are practice and training in preparation for that day. One must actually spar to improve one's skills. What sets us apart from the Dark Path or the Demonic Path? It is the process shown here today. Even the defeated accepted their defeat. The unorthodox heretical paths do not choose their leaders in this manner. Ambush, schemes, betrayal, assassination, poisoning, duels to the death…… In the end, a leader is only decided after someone dies or goes through an agonizing process. We must be different. This is the ultimate purpose of the contest that I desired. Everyone, do not forget my words. The Righteous Path can even select an Alliance Leader in this manner."

Im Sobaek looked around and smiled.

"Some may find it regrettable, but those who wish to spar further should do so unofficially. Or train harder and appear next year. It is right to end things when one still feels regret. If anyone feels truly aggrieved, they may go to the Namgung family later and challenge the Sword Emperor. Though it likely won't be easy."

The Sword Emperor let out a short sigh and raised his hand.

Im Sobaek looked at the Sword Emperor and nodded.

"……Speak."

The Sword Emperor spoke to the heroes.

"If you trouble me too much, I will seal my gates. However, if you come with proper courtesy, I will not avoid you. If you have the skill, come find me at the Namgung family."

Im Sobaek nodded deeply at the Sword Emperor's words. In truth, powerful experts who could defeat the Sword Emperor in a contest were exceedingly rare.

Im Sobaek spoke in a somewhat relaxed tone.

"……To be honest, something left my heart in turmoil yesterday, so I was unable to sleep all night. I shall now return to the Alliance Leader's residence and work until my scheduled hours before resting, so be informed of this. Thus, let some of us part here. You may stay longer if you wish, or return now if you prefer. Heroes, until we meet again."

When Im Sobaek first took a fist-and-palm salute toward the assembly, the heroes, who had been listening all the while, rose simultaneously to return the courtesy.

The Alliance Leader's declaration that he would go to work after staying up all night remained engraved in my mind like some secret technique of martial arts.

If it had been me, I would have gone to take a nap, so what was this feeling—like being struck by a reversal technique?

'Even in this state, he's going to work and then rest…….'

In any case, further contests following Im Sobaek's words held little meaning.

The true meaning (眞意) of Im Sobaek's words was that they should regularly hold such contests to prepare for the later selection of a Martial Arts Alliance Leader.

Both the Martial Arts Alliance and martial contests had likely existed for a long time, but one could say that Im Sobaek had proclaimed the true Martial Arts Conference. Because it was a statement that took even his own future into account, Im Sobaek was a man with a clear sense of when to advance and when to retreat.

As Im Sobaek disappeared with his guards…….

The feeling was quite peculiar.

There was a striking contrast. While the Alliance Leader, who had stayed up all night, was going to work, those left behind were about to grumble right then and there, somehow exuding an atmosphere of just wanting to loaf around and play.

Gongsongwol appeared on the sparring stage and looked around.

“As the Alliance Leader said, it does not matter if you stay a few more days. We will not forbid sparring matches either. The official matches have merely ended. If you wish to spar for the purpose of exchange or training, do so under the supervision of alliance members belonging to the Sword Corps or the Military Council. However, you should understand that if you engage in matches where you seriously injure one another after this, it will run counter to the purpose.”

Gongsun Yue also spoke with due courtesy.

“Then I shall take my leave as well and attend to the Military Council’s duties.”

With the host and the moderator leaving one after another, it was only natural that the energy drained away.

In any case, since I was the strongest among the younger generation, it had nothing to do with me. There was no reason for my spirits to fall. The Ghost Demon was probably a little disappointed, but in truth, all he had to do was climb onto the sparring stage right now and declare like a madman that anyone could come at him. However, the Ghost Demon was currently playing the dignified Master Liuhe, so such a thing did not happen.

“A splendid gathering. At any rate, it ended with the conclusion that I am the strongest of the younger generation, so it wasn’t bad.”

The Four Great Villains looked at me and each threw out a remark.

“……Good for you.”

“Aren’t you impressive.”

“Don’t ruin the moving moment like that. I’m replaying the Alliance Leader’s words.”

Those who felt regret lingered around the sparring stage, belatedly saying things like they should meet again after half an hour or that they would challenge someone, but there were not many who responded. Since we had no intention of leaving the Martial Alliance right away, we headed to Wolha Hall.

As though the Sword Demon had much on his mind as well, he opened his mouth.

“To decide the Alliance Leader through sparring, without anyone dying. If that is possible, then it is certainly different in nature from the demonic path. What surprised me here was……”

The Sword Demon was someone who had participated in the struggle over the Cult Leader’s succession. The meaning of a sparring match must have struck home for him more than anyone.

The Sword Demon continued.

“Since Alliance Leader Im has proclaimed it like that, it means that in truth, anyone can become the Martial Alliance Leader so long as their identity is certain. As the Alliance Leader said, it could even be someone from the younger generation. It also means they will not distinguish between noble clans, sects, or outsiders……”

The Sword Demon looked at the Lust Demon.

“In the future, you could challenge him too.”

The Lust Demon asked back with a startled expression.

“Me?”

“Why? Do you mean you cannot?”

“My conduct is……”

“Even I, who broke away from the Demonic Cult, sparred here. They are people who, in the end, even listen to the sect master when he speaks so obnoxiously. They may have narrow-minded sides, yet they are also open-minded. And because they are open-minded while still questioning conduct, all you need to do is change first.”

“That is true.”

Before we even arrived at Wolha Hall, someone called me from behind.

“Sect Master.”

An alliance member I had never seen before approached and handed me something like a letter as he spoke.

“This is a letter delivered to you from outside, Sect Master. From what I heard, it was the White-Robed Martial Emperor.”

“Thank you.”

“Yes, then.”

I received the letter and slowly opened it. Written briefly inside was this.

「Before you leave, let us have a cup of tea. At Wolseong Inn, the White-Robed Martial Emperor (白衣武帝).」

I burned the letter with the Flame Realm, then looked at the Four Great Villains.

“The White-Robed Scholar says we should have tea……”

The Lust Demon looked at me.

“Could he be trying to assassinate you?”

“Don’t say ‘assassinate’ with such an everyday expression. In any case, if he attacks me, he becomes not a Martial Emperor but a public enemy, so that is unlikely.”

The Sword Demon said to me.

“If you need an escort, we can go with you. But somehow, I do think the conversation will change if we are there.”

“I’ll be back.”

I did not know where Wolseong Inn was, but it had to be near the Martial Alliance. As I walked away, I heard the Ghost Demon’s worried voice from behind.

“It could be poison. Be careful.”

There were times when I could not tell whether he was worrying or cursing me, and this was one of them. Come to think of it, when Im Sobaek advised Gongsun Xin to retire, it was possible that the scholars had also been forbidden from watching the sparring matches, or that Gongsun Xin had told them to restrain themselves.

My face was now known throughout the Martial Alliance, so even when I told the guards I was going out for a while, they did not particularly stop me.

“Where is Wolseong Inn?”

“It is on the right side of Central Road. You will find it right away.”

As I walked, I realized something: I might end up sparring with Deng Ping after going to Wolseong Inn. It was true that I had some measure of association with the White-Robed Scholar, but he was the sort of fellow who would watch and laugh even if one of my arms went flying off in a fight.

I found Wolseong Inn without much difficulty and went inside, but he was not on the first floor, so I went up to the second.

When I arrived on the second floor and looked around, the White-Robed Scholar was drinking alone and turned to look at me.

“Welcome.”

“Why did you call me?”

The White-Robed Scholar set an empty cup down in front of me with a sharp clack and said,

“Sit. Because of you, I could not watch the Great Sword of Six Battles, so think of this as a penalty drink.”

I nodded as I sat down.

“I won’t drink it. It seems like poison.”

Ignoring my words, the White-Robed Scholar poured the liquor and then suddenly said this.

“There is information only we know, unknown to the Martial Alliance, Hao Gate, or the Jecheon Alliance. Knowing it will help you. How much will you pay for this information?”

Since he told me to buy information out of the blue, I could not get a read on it, so I answered roughly.

“Name your price.”

“What?”

“Tell me first how much I have to give you.”

The White-Robed Scholar stared at me. In truth, I wondered whether this bastard even needed money. He lived however he pleased, commanded a large force, and possessed profound martial arts, so he should not need money much.

I reached out, took the liquor bottle, and poured liquor into the empty cup.

“What information is it? I will hear it first and decide the price.”

The White-Robed Scholar’s expression was a little odd, so I deliberately did not ask about the Chief Strategist.

The White-Robed Scholar looked at the liquor I had poured.

“If you drink that, I will tell you.”

I looked at the sloshing white liquor and said,

“The poison?”

“It might be there, or it might not.”

“If it is poison, I will rip you to pieces and kill you today.”

I watched the White-Robed Scholar laugh, then tossed the liquor down my throat. When I drank, the White-Robed Scholar said,

“I heard that wraiths are crawling out of the old main headquarters. We do not know the reason either.”

As I poured another drink, I said to the White-Robed Scholar,

“That was expensive information.”

“Of course.”

In truth, it was information that could not be measured in money. It was something I had not known. For the moment, since I did not want to give him money, I spoke in a serious tone.

“There is a genius painter in Hao Gate, the greatest of all time. I will ask him to paint the White-Robed Martial Emperor once.”

The White-Robed Scholar looked at me with a displeased expression.