Chapter 328. Could It Be They’re Trying to Put You in a Medicinal Decoction?

The White-Clad Scholar was about to drink when he set his cup down and glared up the stairs. Chief Strategist Gongsun Shen, who had been listening in on the conversation all this time, was coming down. Gongsun Shen approached the table and naturally sat across from him as he said,

“……He is impossible to grasp.”

“I told you, didn’t I? That it was difficult to figure out his disposition or personality.”

Gongsun Shen looked at the White-Clad Scholar.

“He is an enemy and an ally at the same time. Or perhaps your relationship is neither. But do you truly intend to let the Hao Sect Master be killed by the Specter?”

“He’s not someone who’ll die easily anyway.”

“It is different if his opponent is the Specter.”

“This isn’t a problem that can be solved just because a few experts help him.”

“Can’t Cheon-ak help?”

The White-Clad Scholar thrust his head forward, stared at Gongsun Shen, and said in a whisper,

“Do you think that bastard would listen to me?”

“I was under the impression he listened closely to what you said.”

“With Cheon-ak, we have to start over from the beginning every time. If he does not understand and accept it himself, he will not move. More importantly, as you saw, the Hao Sect Master has a personality that spits out whatever thoughts are in his head, but that doesn’t mean he’s always impulsive. His mind works quickly. Even so, the fact that he is honest does not change. On the other hand, I still cannot tell what the Chief Strategist is thinking.”

Gongsun Shen nodded.

“The same goes for me, so I cannot tell what you are thinking either. Is it not enough for us to simply confirm that we share a greater cause?”

“What is the Chief Strategist’s greater cause?”

Gongsun Shen answered with a composed expression.

“For a long time, the Murim Alliance has been a place that preserves books. Alliance Leader Im gave me permission to take them all and leave if I wished.”

“Do you intend to?”

“That is not what matters.”

“Then what does?”

Gongsun Shen replied,

“What I learned through those books is that I must protect organizations like the Murim Alliance so they do not disappear. The books themselves are not what is important. Is the meaning contained within them not more important?”

“You really have changed.”

Gongsun Shen answered,

“If I can inherit the will of the scholars of old, organize my thoughts, and leave even a single book behind, then that would prove that the time I spent reading was not in vain. Just as the Hao Sect Master said to you……I think the time has come for me to walk my own path as well.”

The White-Clad Scholar narrowed his brow.

“You mean to retire like this and become a bystander? That is not something I can easily let pass.”

Gongsun Shen smiled.

“I intend to study the past, organize what I have learned, and leave behind books for the next era. If so, does that make me more scholar-like? Or does it make you more scholar-like? A scholar originally means one who reads and studies. Perhaps it is not that I have changed, but that all of you have become corrupted. You are…….”

“I am what?”

“Rather than a scholar, have you not become a man of power? Before you knew it. Those who once said they would oppose a tyrant became tyrants themselves before long. Then again, only at this age have I come to understand the Sword God’s heart, so I suppose I, too, must be called a slow and foolish man. The day will come when your heart changes as well.”

When the White-Clad Scholar glared at him in silence, Gongsun Shen spoke as if admonishing him.

“Even if I am gone, do not clash too much with Alliance Leader Im.”

“Is that an order?”

“Are you the sort of man who listens to orders? I never had such expectations to begin with. No matter how much older I may be, I cannot treat the keeper of the book repository carelessly.”

As Gongsun Shen rose, the White-Clad Scholar asked,

“Where are you going in the middle of a conversation? I never knew having a single talk with you would be this difficult.”

“I must go to the Murim Alliance.”

“You were driven out. Is there any reason to crawl back in?”

Gongsun Shen shook his head.

“If I am to leave, I must pack my belongings. It is not such a harsh place as all that.”

Suddenly, Gongsun Shen’s eyes widened and he stared outside the second floor.

“……!”

The White-Clad Scholar also turned his head sharply with a startled expression and looked toward the window. He had faintly heard the sound of fluttering robes, and before he knew it, the Hao Sect Master was standing outside with an expressionless face.

For a moment, the three of them stared at one another without saying a word.

“…….”

When the White-Clad Scholar and Gongsun Shen merely stared at him in silence, the Hao Sect Master grinned with an unpleasant expression.

* * *

‘These damn bastards……trying to play tricks right in front of me.’

Gongsun Shen must have been listening in on the conversation between the White-Clad Scholar and me before coming down. I had been heading toward the Murim Alliance, then returned while activating the Aesthetics of Letting Go, and eavesdropped on their conversation from below the window.

Gongsun Shen had used the methods of thieves who hid their presence upstairs.

And I used the method the leader of the beggars had displayed downstairs.

In any case, just as with my relationship with the White-Clad Scholar, the relationship between the White-Clad Scholar and the Chief Strategist did not seem all that close either. It felt like a conversation between keepers of libraries who stood on more or less equal footing.

From the window, I said to Gongsun Shen,

“Chief Strategist, let us go together. We’re headed the same way.”

Gongsun Shen asked me with a flustered expression,

“Sect Master, were you eavesdropping?”

I answered in an incredulous tone,

“Aren’t we both in the same boat?”

“Mm.”

“From a high place, the strategist of the Murim Alliance comes to know things, and from a low place, the Hao Sect Master eavesdrops. It wasn’t even that impressive a conversation. Let’s go. See you again, White-Clad Martial Emperor.”

I dropped straight down from the window.

As I waited with my hands clasped behind my back, Gongsun Shen walked out. To guide the old strategist to the Murim Alliance, I gestured toward the Murim Alliance with my hand.

“Let’s go. Think of it as a stroll.”

Was this man truly the Hall Master Kwae whom I had failed to meet in my previous life? If he had been shut away in the Murim Alliance serving as Chief Strategist, then perhaps it was only natural that I had not met him.

Gongsun Shen was walking beside me, and as expected, I could not hear his footsteps at all. He was like a recluse hiding himself so he would not be revealed to the world. If he was a recluse, I could leave him be, but if he was a hidden mastermind pretending to be a recluse, there was a need to drag him out. I intended to see what kind of thoughts this man lived with.

Just as this bastard had observed me.

Since Gongsun Shen kept his mouth shut, I spoke first.

“……I heard you are retiring.”

“That is how it turned out.”

“You did well. While you’re at it, tell them to give you a generous severance payment too. If they worked a man like that for decades, they ought to send him off with plenty of retirement money.”

“Is there such a thing as a severance payment?”

I stopped for a moment and looked once around the shopping district that had formed near the Murim Alliance.

“Chief Strategist, when you first came to the Murim Alliance in your youth, did the shops here look like this?”

Gongsun Shen followed my gaze and looked around once.

“They have changed greatly. That area over there was nothing but fields.”

“The scenery of the streets must have changed a lot as well.”

“You could say that.”

I looked at Gongsonsim.

“You worked from the time your hair was black until it turned white; you ought to receive a severance package. If they won't give one, I'll protest to the Alliance Leader.”

Gongsonsim let out a short sigh and pointed at the Murim Alliance.

“Let us go.”

We began walking again.

Gongsonsim, who had been silent, opened his mouth first this time.

“I heard you proposed an alliance with the scholars to the Alliance Leader.”

His tone had also become somewhat more at ease.

“That may be so, but it was something I said because I don't know the scholars well, so I don't think it was a very realistic proposal.”

“Did you think I was the leader of the scholars?”

“You were, once.”

“And now?”

“How would I know?”

“If you don't know, why seek me out to speak face-to-face like this?”

I cast a sideways glance at Gongsonsim.

“I heard you got fired…….”

“What?”

“Didn't you get fired?”

“Ah, are you talking about retirement?”

“Retirement or getting fired, it's all the same.”

He was an old man who didn't catch on easily, likely because he'd spent his whole life wielding highbrow vocabulary.

I asked Gongsonsim about his plans.

“Since you're fired, what will you do now? How about opening a bookstore?”

Gongsonsim let out a hollow laugh, seemingly dumbfounded.

“A bookstore owner…….”

“The work is similar, after all.”

“Did you suggest we walk just to mock me like this?”

“Not exactly. I had something to ask.”

“Ask, then.”

“According to the White-Robed Martial Emperor, phantoms have departed from the old headquarters. It was speculated that they set out to capture me…… What do you think? Since you even served as Chief Strategist of the Murim Alliance, I thought you might have a unique insight.”

“What is your opinion, my lord?”

I answered with a snap of my fingers.

“So what am I? Just what am I? I can't fathom why they would come all this way from such a distant place just to capture me.”

“I heard you annihilated the Demonic Cult's forces. It is hardly strange. Moreover, the phantoms of the old headquarters are external forces even from the Demonic Cult's standpoint. They are closer to a loosely allied faction with somewhat drawn boundaries. If the phantoms run rampant and manage to kill the Kings or you, it would be a pleasant thing for the Cult Leader.”

“Does that mean there is a chance the Cult Leader orchestrated this?”

“If he sent the Four Heavenly Kings to the old headquarters, he would have considered various possibilities. They might go and be beaten to death by the phantoms. They might become the phantoms' disciples and return stronger. Or the phantoms, having heard all sorts of things out of nowhere, might come carrying curiosity about you. Unless the Cult Leader is a god who can read human hearts, one cannot say he clearly aimed for this. Or perhaps……”

“Perhaps?”

“Since they are experts who have thoroughly mastered even the old demonic arts, they may simply be coming to try putting you in a tonic decoction.”

Now that I thought about it, this man's way with words was quite sharp too. He was indeed not someone who had become Chief Strategist merely by playing around, eating, and hauling books.

“A tonic decoction… You mean I've become a living ginseng.”

“I heard from the Alliance Leader that you have fully mastered both yin and yang martial arts.”

“That is so.”

“You will be a nourishing tonic for the phantoms.”

“Stop treating me like food. It's offensive to the listener. Anyway, I'm popular in all sorts of ways.”

“Must be nice.”

“Then what should I do?”

Gongsonsim looked at me.

“What exactly are you asking?”

“If I speak to Alliance Leader Lim, he will surely help, but I believe countless Alliance members will die fighting the phantoms. It's neither efficient nor my style. Yet fighting them without knowing their level or how many are coming is also overwhelming. I'm asking if there isn't a better plan.”

“Why ask me?”

“Look here, Chief Strategist.”

“A man about to be fired.”

“Is it so hard to offer up a single strategy? Does it cost money? You didn't sit in the Chief Strategist's seat just because you're old. If you sat there because you're clever, you should produce a plan. It's absurd. Earn your keep. Don't forget that I too am an ally of the Murim Alliance.”

“What method could there be against old demonic masters? They are beings who have weathered every kind of hardship. The only way is to act as if you don't yet know of the phantoms' existence, then receive support from experts. That is the simplest and most efficient course.”

“Return normally, be ambushed, then have the waiting experts join forces to kill the phantoms?”

“You would have to assemble that personnel carefully. If exposed, the phantoms will be on guard as well. And in truth, this is not a matter of strategy.”

“Is it a matter of who can help me?”

Gongsonsim nodded.

“Something like that. Still, with the four of you, couldn't you kill three or four phantoms?”

“What if there are a dozen phantoms?”

“Ah, could you endure? If over ten Kings charge at once, someone will die. Lives are on the line; I wonder if there will be many experts willing to help you.”

“Am I that despised?”

“The Alliance Leader would try to help, but if he were to fall at a time like this, it wouldn't be strange for a war with the Demonic Cult to break out immediately. The enemy commander is not one to miss such an opportunity. Rather, Alliance Leader Lim's presence must be greater on the Demonic Path than in the Righteous Path, I should think.”

Gongsonsim was openly rebuking me, as if asking whether I would drive Alliance Leader Lim to his death. He could say this because he knew I was not the sort to do so. For someone about to be fired, he was rather concerned about the Murim Alliance and Im Sobaek.

‘He doesn't seem to be the mastermind.’

I had already arrived at the main gate of the Murim Alliance and spoke to Gongsonsim.

“Chief Strategist, thank you for the advice.”

“Was it helpful?”

I nodded.

“It helped, and I've made up my mind as well. Farewell.”

As I walked from the Murim Alliance toward the Wolhagwan, Gongsonsim, who had been standing behind, called out to me.

“Lord of Haomun.”

When I stopped and looked back, Gongsonsim asked.

“Would you tell me what your resolution is?”

“Must I tell you?”

“If it helped, tell me.”

I nodded.

“Chief Strategist, keep quiet about the phantoms for now. I'll handle them myself.”

“It will be difficult.”

“Just because it's difficult doesn't mean I can drag others to their deaths.”

“Then the three traveling with you can die without issue?”

Just what was this man expecting me to say? I spoke my mind.

“I don't mind.”

“The reason?”

I looked Gongsun Xin up and down before speaking.

“Well. I doubt someone who’s going to retire after doing nothing but reading books would understand even if I told him.”

“So this is why people say you have no manners whenever they speak of you.”

I glared at Gongsun Xin.

“Do you think I live like this to earn a reputation for being polite? The four of us are proud men. Whether we live or die comes after that. Telling us to run because a powerful enemy has appeared is an insult in itself, so there’s no need to say it. The same would be true if the situation were reversed. I’ve explained it this much—can you understand?”

“I cannot say I understand it deeply.”

“Chief Strategist, what do you think about joining Haomun?”

“Me?”

“You shouldn’t look down from on high at only a part of the world and believe that was all under heaven. If you’ve watched the jianghu for so long from the highest place, it wouldn’t be bad to fall to the lowest place now and see what the lives of common people are really like. That place is crawling with fools and the sick, people who work hard and are paid little, people addicted to one thing or another, and those who can barely endure each day. Once you see that with your own eyes, you’ll properly understand what meaning the work you did in the Murim Alliance had.”

“And what changes once I understand?”

“Nothing much will change. You’ll just come to understand a little more of the world that even that clever head of yours couldn’t grasp. For example, why Alliance Leader Lin suffers from such terrible insomnia, why the Haomun Sect Leader is such an ill-mannered bastard… why the fellows who go around with him look so pathetic. Little things like that?”

“What use is there in knowing such things?”

I slowly walked backward while looking at Gongsun Xin. He was probably the smartest man in the Murim Alliance, yet to my eyes he did not look smart at all, and a laugh escaped me.

“You need to know a bit of that before you can finally distinguish between books and the world, my learned lord.”

Only then did Gongsun Xin’s face begin to turn bright red.

At last, I could see the expression of Gongsun Xin, whose composure had been broken. My suspicion that he was the hidden mastermind had somewhat receded. He was, perhaps, a man who had stayed on the righteous path until he became an old man of the righteous path.

To satisfy my curiosity, I watched Gongsun Xin’s expression closely.

“See you again, Hall Master Kuai.”

The moment Gongsun Xin’s eyes widened, I turned and headed for Wolhagwan.

‘I finally solved that curiosity of mine. That old man, Hall Master Kuai……’

In truth, I had been sincere about asking him to join Haomun, but the flow of the conversation had been poor, so it must have sounded like mockery. Bringing the Hall Master Kuai of my past life into Haomun would be good for me, but the world did not move according to one’s wishes, so I did not have any great expectations.