Episode 57. The Feeling of Becoming Soenachal

The old martial artist called Daenachal had died.

He died to me—to me, the shopkeeper of Ilyanghyeon, the sect leader of Haomun, the liberator of Heokseonbo, the leader of the Heukmyo Bang, the regular patron of Chunyang Restaurant, the patient of Moyong Medical Hall.

At this rate, I had truly developed at an incredible speed.

I thought I was doing well.

It hadn’t been easy for me not to kill my martial brothers either. If things had gone as they did in my previous life, I would have dragged them here by the hair when their morale had already crumbled and beaten them to death. As if I wouldn’t have. If this matter had followed the same path as before, I would have regained the alias of Gwangma in no time.

That couldn’t happen.

I intended to delay it as much as possible.

Because this was still the period before even Gwangseung, who could be called the previous generation’s Gwangma, had arrived in the Central Plains.

If rumors of the Gwangma spread needlessly, there was a chance Gwangseung would come looking for me first.

I didn’t want to be dragged off to Jeolgang to look at fish before I could even stabilize the surroundings of Ilyanghyeon in my own way.

Even though I had grown strong enough to kill Daenachal, my evaluation of Gwangseung could not change.

Because I knew better than anyone just how strong this man was.

I suddenly looked at Baegin, Cheongjin, and Baegyu, who were waiting without fleeing. The three seemed to be waiting with the intention of taking care of Daenachal’s body and holding a funeral for him. But since I kept standing there staring at Daenachal, they were caught in a situation where they could do nothing.

I spoke to the three.

“Take care of the body.”

Only then did the three detach themselves from the wall and approach where I was.

Since they had already witnessed my lightness arts, the three had no thoughts of running away anyway.

“Since it is our master’s last will, start by removing your masks.”

Resigned, Baegin nodded and removed his mask, and Cheongjin and Baegyu revealed their faces as well.

I memorized the faces of those three as I spoke to Chief Manager Byeok.

“Chief Manager Byeok, if these divine general martial brothers do anything that goes against Daenachal’s last will, post wanted posters of their faces in every direction. Can you sketch them?”

Chief Manager Byeok looked at the three and nodded.

“It is not a difficult task.”

I took care of the messy interior as well.

“Heukmyo Bang, clean up the interior and clear away the corpses lying in the streets too. And Twelve Divine General disciples, let’s have a brief talk. Take the body after the conversation is over, and Chief Manager Byeok, Hongsin, and Geumhae, come inside as well.”

* * *

I sat at the head seat, looked at the martial brothers sitting in a row across from me, and spoke.

“Now, I am your Eldest Martial Brother.”

“…….”

“If there was anything I taught you, I would take on the role of your master, but as you can see, I am younger, so Eldest Martial Brother suits me perfectly. Anyone opposed?”

Perhaps because Daenachal was dead, the atmosphere was gloomy.

Baegin, who looked about twenty-seven, answered alone.

“Since it was our master’s last will, I shall comply.”

For now, Hongsin and Geumhae, who had at least shared a meal with me and nearly fallen into qi deviation while talking, understood me a bit better.

In other words, what I was saying now would go over well with Hongsin and Geumhae, but to the remaining divine generals, it would sound like the rambling of a madman.

But that was fine.

What I did had always been like this, and people needed time to understand one another.

What mattered was that Daenachal was dead, and these guys could now remove their masks.

“I’ll tell you martial brothers what to do. If you make me say it twice, I’ll challenge you to a life-and-death duel, so listen carefully and attentively.”

Hongsin answered spiritedly on his own.

“Yes, Eldest Martial Brother.”

Sharing a pot of pork backbone stew certainly created a unique depth of camaraderie.

Geumhae seemed afraid of both me and Baegin, whom he usually feared as well, so he kept his mouth tightly shut.

“Martial Brother Baegin, did you respect Daenachal?”

“Rather than respect, I had mixed feelings.”

“Which part was affection rather than hatred?”

Baegin spoke.

“That other demonic path factions could not encroach upon Namhwa. Even when forces larger than ours were all around us, our master had the bearing of a fierce general. The masks held that meaning as well—he could raise his disciples into assassins and send them after you, so do not touch me. That is why, despite countless shortcomings, Namhwa never permitted other demonic path forces to advance.”

“To sum it up, even if his personal life was a mess, he played the role of a demonic path leader well. Is that what you mean?”

Baegin nodded.

As I conversed with the martial brothers, I was gauging their personalities.

Baegin was calm throughout, while Cheongjin appeared to be a taciturn man of martial bone.

Baegyu at least seemed to be the quick-witted type, but his skill fell far short compared to Baegin and Cheongjin.

The atmosphere among them was too rigid from long struggles over the pecking order. Even Hongsin, who usually kicked up a fuss, preferred silence in this setting.

Sensing this stiff atmosphere, I just cursed and spat out whatever came to mind.

“Martial brothers, Master Daenachal is dead now, so let’s do this cheerfully.”

Since I had killed their master and was now telling them to be cheerful, naturally the divine generals’ expressions soured. But since I was not one to read the room, I spoke again in a stern tone.

“I. Said. Cheer. Ful. Ly.”

“Yes.”

“Understood.”

“I don’t know the extent of each of your forces or how many subordinates you have. After Daenachal’s funeral, clean up all of this idiotic mess. A demonic path faction cannot suddenly become a righteous path faction. However, I will free you from the disgraceful label of the demonic path before the outside world.”

Geumhae, who had been quiet, answered.

“Is there such a method?”

“Just come into Haomun. I’m neither righteous path nor demonic path to begin with. It was like that in the past, and I plan to keep it that way. It’s simply Haomun. A sect created by working people coming together. A secret force, a puny force, a complicated force, a disorganized organization. All the forces you divine generals managed must come entirely under me. Since it’s a sect for working people, what should we start with?”

No one answered immediately.

Because there was so damn much that they wouldn’t know where to start.

Truthfully, I didn’t know either.

I had no choice but to leave it to them.

“You can come and go often to report. You can come find me when problems arise. I’m planning to leave things as they are for the time being, so handle it among yourselves. However, clean up the things the demonic path was doing on your own. When I took over the Heukmyo Bang, I didn’t even bring my direct subordinates.”

For example, I had Cha Seongtae as a direct subordinate.

I thought for a moment, but since there didn’t seem to be anyone else, I held my tongue.

“Anyway, if there’s anything you don’t like, I’ll bring the entire force of Haomun, smash everything to pieces, and then hand all the business over to your local shopkeeper. I’ve given you a chance to live, so I hope you don’t make me your enemy again.”

Baegin, who was at least composed, answered alone.

“We will take care of it.”

Since I didn’t like the answer at all, I nodded half-heartedly and added a threat.

“It is pointless to nitpick and lecture grown men. If you have removed your masks, then change on your own from now on. I am not a good man. Nor am I someone of great patience. I am the type who must endure inwardly dozens of times over if I wish to spare someone. Just as was the case when I let the three of you live—Baegin, Cheongjin, and Baegyu.”

Cheongjin answered.

“I suppose we need only cast away the deeds committed while wearing the mask, along with the mask itself.”

“Exactly. Is it so difficult?”

This time, Baegyu answered.

“It is not without its difficulties.”

“Speak. Which part is difficult?”

“Master has both enemies and allies. The Chilong Laojun is an especially close friend. He often received money from Master, and was even given women from time to time. I believe the Chilong Laojun will be the first to rage.”

“What else?”

“There is the Yunyu Society. They were the enemies with the worst relationship with Master. Their overall strength was similar to ours, but the Yunyu Society Leader cut off Master’s right arm. With Master fallen, the Society Leader will surely be overjoyed. Besides, many people held grudges against Master. It is impossible to predict how they will act.”

I placed a hand over my chest for a moment.

“Whew, that is a relief.”

Hongsin immediately answered.

“Eldest Brother, what is fortunate about it?”

I replied in a calm tone.

“It means there are more bastards to kill. And don’t tell me the ‘Yunyu’ of the Yunyu Society is the same ‘Yunyu’ as in the Yunyu Zhile that I know of?”

“Yes.”

I tilted my head slightly. Yunyu Zhile refers to the pleasure of union between man and woman.

I had never heard of such an explicit and perverted sect name even in my previous life. But something suddenly came to mind, so I asked the generals.

“What is the Society Leader’s name?”

“It is Ximen Shuijing.”

I thought of his nickname first.

“Is his nickname perhaps Shui Xiansheng?”

“Yes, do you know him?”

“Only by hearsay.”

‘So that bastard’s sect was the Yunyu Society.’

There had been an incident where a Murim Alliance agent had cut off the heads of Shui Xiansheng and more than ten others in downtown streets, bringing heavy criticism upon the Murim Alliance. It was later revealed to have been a solo revenge spree by an agent who held a personal grudge, carried out without any orders from the alliance.

I called out to Chief Manager Byeok, who was silently sketching the generals’ appearances beside me.

“Chief Manager Byeok, put out a wanted order for the Chilong Laojun first.”

“Understood.”

“And deliver a personal letter to the Yunyu Society in the name of the Black Cat Lord.”

“What should it say?”

Nothing in particular came to mind, so I dumped the task on Chief Manager Byeok.

“Tell them not to act cocky and to behave themselves quietly. You are far better than me with the brush, so handle it as you see fit.”

Chief Manager Byeok nodded, brush in hand.

“So, it should contain a declaration of war disguised as a personal letter, correct?”

“Correct.”

Chief Manager Byeok smiled bashfully and then began seriously sketching the generals’ appearances again.

Baegyu opened his mouth once more.

“The Yunyu Society’s strength is no trifling matter either. There is no need to deliberately provoke them first—”

“You coward, Junior Brother.”

“Yes.”

“Shut up. The sect name is unpleasant, and I have no intention of leaving them alone.”

Baegyu pressed his lips together with a disgruntled expression.

I looked around at those gathered and spoke.

“Besides, if someone cut off Master’s arm, seeking revenge is only natural.”

Baegin briefly furrowed his brows before looking at me and nodding.

“You speak true.”

Perhaps because he was the Daluosha’s oldest disciple, he seemed to harbor quite a bit of resentment toward the Yunyu Society Leader.

Chief Manager Byeok gave a clever answer, taking the junior brothers’ concerns into account.

“May I send the letter after things have stabilized to some degree? For now, I shall focus on issuing the wanted order for the Chilong Laojun.”

“Do so. Junior Brothers Baegin, Cheongjin, and Baegyu, handle the funeral properly. The three of you must correct the evil deeds Master committed. If your anger does not subside during that process, or if you find me displeasing, you are free to leave for the Chilong Laojun or the Yunyu Society.”

I conveyed my true feelings to the junior brothers, including Hongsin and Geumhae.

“At that time, none of you will need to treat me as your senior brother either. You three, go handle your affairs first.”

The three of them rose, then looked at the masks placed on the table.

I too looked at the masks and spoke.

“Leave them here. We shall use them later when we inevitably do bad things.”

“Eldest Brother, we shall take our leave.”

“We shall be going as well.”

Once the three had left, Geumhae spoke.

“Can we trust the Four Divine Generals?”

“What does it matter whether I trust them or not? The only thing I trust is martial arts. Whether they betray me or not, if I grow stronger every day, all schemes, conspiracies, betrayals, and rebellions become meaningless. If Haomun is to become a slightly better force, it would be better for a single traitor to gather every last disgruntled member to stand against me. Let us simply go with the flow. Merrily…”

Hongsin nodded.

“Let us go merrily.”

Only then did I remember something to have Hongsin do.

“Junior Sister Hong, go to that Ilpyeong Inn, or whatever it’s called, and pay the tab. Chief Manager Byeok will handle the money. There is a house in front of it where an old woman weaves cloth; speak politely to her and retrieve the Heukmyo Arang mask from the room she uses. I left it under the drawers and the bed. Give her some pocket money as well.”

“Understood.”

I looked at Geumhae.

“Junior Brother Geumhae, you no longer need to pay tribute to the Daluosha, I suppose.”

“That is correct.”

Geumhae swallowed once and said something he did not mean.

“Should I pay it to the Eldest Brother now?”

“There is no need.”

“Then what should I do?”

“Use all the money you used to offer to the Daluosha to make yourself stronger. If you had been strong in the first place, you would not have had to hand over your family’s hard-earned money. Junior Brother Baegin is far stronger than you. Train properly.”

Geumhae answered.

“Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. Your internal energy too…”

I regretted it the moment I spoke.

“Well, I am sorry about that.”

“Yes.”

“I am sorry, but there is no way to return it. The martial art I learned is strange—I can take it, but I cannot give it. It simply does not work that way. At least you did not die like the Daluosha. Accept it cheerfully.”

After throwing out those words, I felt as though I had become a Xiaoluosha.