.jpeg){kind=tracking}
Chapter 63: Perhaps It Is Not Enough
The Yoomyung Cult is the enemy of Murim, regardless of whether it's on the side of justice or evil.
Yi Wonho hesitated for a moment, but he decided there was no point in hiding the truth.
“The leaders went to Yeoju to find the Yoomyung Cult.”
“Yoomyung Cult?”
Yeon Jeokha, not understanding what it was, tilted his head in confusion.
The bandits of Five Peaks Mountain were so busy surviving that they paid no attention to the affairs of the world. They might worry if a new trade entered the area or if the army was moving suspiciously, but the Yoomyung Cult was of no interest to them.
Finally, Yi Wonho realized that he had to explain what the Yoomyung Cult was for his interlocutor to understand.
When he finished his lengthy explanation, Yeon Jeokha murmured disdainfully.
“So it’s an evil sect.”
“It’s not just an evil sect; it’s a terrifying sect that kills as if it were a daily pastime.”
Yi Wonho lowered his voice, trying to sound friendly.
“Yeah, whatever. Why are they still here? Don’t they want to leave?”
“Of course we want to leave! Let’s go.”
Yi Wonho hurriedly took the rope from Hwang Yomyeong’s hands.
A moment later, Yi Wonho and the Five Heroes of Luoyang quickly crossed the yard.
As Yeon Jeokha watched Yeon Seungbaek and Yeon Seolju leave with bitterness, Ha Sobaek approached him and spoke.
“What’s wrong, brother? Do you feel bad about letting them go? Should I bring them back?”
“No.”
“Then why do you have that expression?”
“What’s wrong with my expression?”
“You look like you’re still angry. Like a child whose favorite toy was taken away.”
“I’m too old for you to call me a child. Stop saying nonsense and train hard. You never know when we’ll have to leave this place.”
“Can’t you just protect us, brother?”
“If someone like the Uicheon Sect Leader shows up, it will be a problem. It’s better to avoid it. I could escape, but the others couldn’t.”
“Is that person so strong? Stronger than you?”
To Ha Sobaek, a novice in the world of Murim, Yeon Jeokha was the best fighter in the world. She had no idea how powerful the Ten Supreme Masters were.
“In the Nokrim Competition, I met the Great Chaeju, the Heaven Destroyer Demon Lord, and it was truly terrifying. I felt like I would lose if I fought him. And that old man, the Uicheon Sect Leader, seems to be just as strong. Do you understand now why I want us to leave the camp?”
“Oh!”
Finally, Ha Sobaek seemed to understand and opened her mouth in surprise.
To her, Yeon Jeokha was already on a superhuman level. But hearing this, she now felt like a frog in a well.
“But someday you’ll beat strong people like them, right?”
Her tone was as if she were seeking confirmation.
Yeon Jeokha smiled slightly.
At that moment, Pung Yeoncho approached.
“From today, we should use the thugs from Haga Village. You never know when the warriors from Luoyang might come.”
“Brother Pung, tell them we’ll give a hundred nyang to the person who first informs us if they see the warriors from Luoyang. They’ll come running immediately.”
“Really? A hundred nyang? They won’t sleep watching.”
“Of course. It’s enough money to live comfortably for ten years.”
After conversing with Ha Sobaek, Pung Yeoncho looked at Yeon Jeokha.
“By the way, Brother Yeon. We’ve received a large sum of two thousand two hundred taels of silver. What should we do with it?”
Pung Yeoncho was willing to let Yeon Jeokha decide how to use the money since he had earned it.
But Yeon Jeokha showed no interest.
He even shrugged and walked away.
“Huh? What’s wrong with him? Did something happen?”
“He seems to be in a bad mood. He’s been like this for a while.”
“After scamming Waryong Manor so well, why is he like this? Didn’t you misunderstand something?”
“Brother Pung, you saw it yourself. Brother Yeon just left without saying anything.”
“Then why?”
“I don’t know. He’s been in a bad mood since the people from Waryong Manor left. Then he seemed to get a little better, but when you mentioned the money, he went back to being like this.”
“Those from Waryong Manor are a problem. We should ruin them completely. There’s no other option.”
“They’ll surely be ruined soon, as the Chamber of Commerce will stop doing business with them.”
The two blamed Waryong Manor for Yeon Jeokha’s bad mood and began to plan how to take revenge.
Yeon Jeokha climbed to the top of the main mountain of Five Peaks Mountain and sat on his usual meditation rock.
He looked expressionlessly at the fog covering the mountain in front of him.
Seeing Yeon Seungbaek running to rescue his sister and Yeon Seolju’s joy upon seeing him made him feel strange.
It wasn’t that he was less angry, as Ha Sobaek had said.
To be exact, he was mixed with nostalgia, rage, jealousy, and a series of indescribable feelings.
Seeing Yeon Seolju suffering filled him with satisfaction but also bitterness.
Those feelings did not disappear even after Yeon Seungbaek and Yeon Seolju left.
Waryong Manor.
The more he thought about it, the more frustrated and annoyed he felt.
‘What should I do?’
As Yeon Jeokha sighed, immersed in his frustration, he heard footsteps behind him.
There weren’t many people who could climb to the top of the main mountain.
Yeon Jeokha, feeling overwhelmed, didn’t even bother to look.
“Young master, everyone is worried.”
It was Shim Yanggak, the Immortal Sword Demon.
Recently, Shim Yanggak had started calling Yeon Jeokha "young master" instead of "older brother." Yeon Jeokha accepted it naturally, as it matched his new position.
“Worried about the elders of Uicheon Sect?”
“More than that, they’re worried because you don’t seem to be in a good mood.”
“Me? I have nothing to worry about.”
“Hehe, then why are you here alone? Today you should rest.”
“Rest because money came in, rest because it’s raining, rest because it’s snowing, rest because it’s good weather, rest because it’s cloudy, rest because I’m tired, when am I supposed to train then?”
Yeon Jeokha’s words, full of irritation, made Shim Yanggak laugh.
“Why are you laughing?”
“Because I realize you’re human too.”
“I’m human, what do you think, that I’m a monster?”
“In terms of martial skills, you’re more than a monster.”
“Stop talking nonsense. How’s your breathing lately?”
“I still fluctuate between the stages of 'Qi' and 'Si'. It seems I’ll soon be able to perform the 'Unqi Tonab' technique.”
'Si' is the stage where it’s hard to tell if you’re breathing or not, indicating that he would soon be able to enter a deep meditation state. If he could achieve this state, accumulating internal energy with the True Classic of the Nine Heavens as One would not be a problem.
“Don’t overdo your desire to accumulate internal energy. The True Classic of the Nine Heavens as One is practiced with an empty mind.”
“Yes, I keep that in mind.”
Yeon Jeokha observed the old Shim Yanggak for a moment and then spoke.
“Old Shim, I was thinking about something… never mind…”
Yeon Jeokha shook his head, and Shim Yanggak smiled cunningly once more.
“I told you not to smile like that. It bothers me a lot.”
“Then tell me what you were thinking.”
“It’s nothing important. I bothered the people from Waryong Manor, but I don’t feel satisfied. I was wondering why that is.”
“Perhaps it’s not enough.”
As the great demon he was, Shim Yanggak had a rather violent way of thinking.
“Not enough?”
“Yes, if you crush them until they beg for their lives, you’ll feel better.”
“Are you sure?”
“Based on my experience, yes.”
As someone who had experienced it, Yeon Jeokha felt intrigued.
“Isn’t it enough to ruin Waryong Manor?”
“Of course not. They’re the people who tried to kill you. You should crush them until they’re on the brink of death. Then you’ll feel completely relieved.”
“Really…?”
“I guarantee it. A small financial decline is not enough. Seeing them beg for their lives while crying will make you feel like new.”
Yeon Jeokha nodded.
That seemed to make sense.
Furthermore, no one had pointed out the cause and solution as clearly as Shim Yanggak.
Shim Yanggak’s advice, someone who knew nothing about human psychology, deeply impacted Yeon Jeokha.
Dawn
Yeon Jeokha, sitting on the bench, called Hwang Yomyeong, who was crossing the yard at that moment.
“What do you need from me, brother?”
“I have an errand for you. Take these messages to the surrounding camps.”
Yeon Jeokha handed him a bundle of letters.
“Which camps are you referring to?”
“What are the camps around Luoyang?”
“To the north is Suryongchae, in the Yellow River basin. And to the west is Yeongsanchae and to the east is Guryongchae. To the south are Samaksanchae, Jeokpungchae, and our Obongsanchae (Five Peaks Mountain Gang).”
Hwang Yomyeong, having spent a lot of time in Nokrim, knew the camps of the province well.
“Please deliver these letters to Suryongchae, Yeongsanchae, Guryongchae, Samaksanchae, and Jeokpungchae.”
“Do I hand them to the bosses?”
“Yes, they’ll know what to do.”
“Brother, I’ve heard that the boss of the Samak camp is very temperamental. Are you sure it’ll be okay?”
Hwang Yomyeong was worried that they might have trouble if he delivered the letters. He wasn’t sure if the bosses would help with matters related to Waryong Manor.
“Don’t worry. No one will touch you.”
“Really?”
“Yes, if anyone causes you trouble, they must be crazy.”
As the chief inspector, Hwang Yomyeong should have enough influence.
“Understood!”
Hwang Yomyeong completely trusted Yeon Jeokha’s words. He didn’t believe someone like him would say nonsense.
Luoyang’s Murim was in turmoil.
Of the people from the Justice Division and the warriors of the five families who went to Yeoju, only two returned alive: the Virtue Swordsman, Yi Yeonik, and Yeon Mubak, the Waryong Swordsman of Waryong Manor.
The elders mocked the Five Heroes of Luoyang, calling them the “Five Fallen Leaves of Luoyang.”
But that lasted only a short while.
The disaster in Yeoju quickly overshadowed the issue of the Five Heroes. Uicheon Sect turned into a house of mourning after losing so many disciples and the leader’s arm.
Ten of the best from the Justice Division and another ten from Uicheon Sect lost their lives. About a quarter of Uicheon Sect’s disciples died.
All who died were the best among the best, and the sense of loss in Uicheon Sect was immense.
Yi Yeonik, who survived, began to resume his duties as leader three days later.
That night, while he was in his office thinking about something, he decided to visit Yi Somin, his daughter.
When Yi Somin saw her father without an arm, she lowered her head and apologized.
“I’m sorry, father.”
“It doesn’t matter. Actually, I have something to ask you. You must have heard about what happened in Yeoju.”
“Yes.”
“The leader of Eunha Manor was one of the Three Elders of Nokrim, known as the Swordsman of Chaos. I have always been superior to him. But when I met him at Eunha Manor, he was almost as strong as your grandfather.”
Yi Somin didn’t understand why her father was telling her this, so she just listened quietly.
“It wasn’t that his martial skills were superior; it was his internal energy that I couldn’t withstand. It was at a transcendental level… And it was all thanks to the abilities of the Yoomyung Cult.”
“Abilities?”
“Yes, the Yoomyung Cult uses forbidden techniques similar to demonic arts, sacrificing monks’ bodies to gain superhuman abilities.”
“Are those abilities like internal energy?”
“Yes, based on my experience, it’s transcendental internal energy. Reaching your grandfather’s level is not easy. Only the chosen ones can do it. But someone who used to be inferior to me reached that level thanks to those abilities.”
“Oh!”
“Today, thinking about the young bandit from Five Peaks Mountain, I wondered if he could have also obtained abilities like the Swordsman of Chaos. Maybe all of Nokrim has achieved this.”
Yi Somin listened with a mix of amazement and concern, thinking about the implications of what her father was saying.