Chapter 138

The luxurious six-horse carriage raced onward without slowing.

Elite-looking soldiers cleared the road ahead, while the crowds swarming like ants parted to either side and watched the carriage fly past like the wind.

“So this is how Moses felt.”

Cheongpung reacted to my mutter.

“Moses? Who is that?”

“Someone.”

“Oh, I see.”

If it had been Hyuk Mujin, he would have complained for ages about me saying something weird, but Cheongpung was different.

He wore the excited expression of a child at an amusement park as he pressed and tapped every part of the carriage.

“This is my first time riding in a six-horse carriage!”

“…What about a four-horse carriage?”

“I’ve never ridden in one of those, either!”

“What about an ordinary carriage…?”

“I’d like to ride in one of those, too!”

“…”

If I put him on a subway, he would probably faint.

At this point, it would be much faster to count the things he had done than the things he hadn’t.

I stared at the thoroughly excited Cheongpung.

What the hell is this guy?

Was he innocent or stupid?

Then again, he had said he had lived his entire life in the mountains. Maybe this was only natural.

At least he’s easy to handle.

I still couldn’t forget the expression he had just made. His eyes had lit up like high beams at the mere mention of the imperial family.

“Have you ever seen a member of the imperial family?”

“I want to! I’ll see one! Please let me see one!”

What filled his eyes wasn’t the sort of admiration ordinary commoners felt toward the imperial family. If I had to compare it to something, it was more like the excitement of going to see an elephant at the zoo.

He really is a strange one.

Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who thought so.

The young prodigies of the Five Gates of Shanxi, excluding the severely injured Woo Jintae, were staring at Cheongpung as if they were looking at something bizarre.

“There’s something a little… off about him.”

“Can we really go like this?”

“If he says something inappropriate in front of His Highness, we might get dragged into it, too.”

“We’ll be lucky if that’s all he does. If he gets excited about seeing a member of the imperial family for the first time and pulls on his ear, we’re finished. Completely finished.”

…That was a surprisingly plausible prediction.

Hearing the young prodigies whispering, the official riding in the carriage with us leaned over anxiously and whispered.

“Um, Young Master Jin.”

“Yes?”

“That man… Are you certain he’s all right?”

“Trust me. He’s a master I can vouch for.”

“To hell with whether he’s a master. I’m asking whether he’s right in the head.”

“Oh.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to bring along the martial artist who was with you instead?”

“Who? Ah, Hyuk Mujin?”

“I believe that was his name. I hear he’s also quite skilled in martial arts.”

If Mujin had heard that, he would have jumped for joy.

The problem was that he had a dark blue bruise on his face from getting beaten by me that morning, so there was no way he could come along.

Besides, Hyuk Mujin wouldn’t be enough.

To avoid offending the young prince, I needed to bring a more impressive gift.

I firmly shook my head at the worried official.

“Don’t worry. I’ll take responsibility for keeping him under control.”

Who was I? A direct descendant of the prestigious Jin Family of Taiyuan, a rising star, and Shanxi Murim’s newest sensation.

My bold assurance brightened the official’s expression a little.

“Then I’ll trust Young Master Jin—”

Crack.

“…?”

“…?”

Wait a second. What was that sound?

As if on cue, we all turned our heads at the same time.

There was Cheongpung, clutching something in his hands.

“Huh? Why did this fall off?”

Cheongpung grinned foolishly, holding an exquisitely crafted golden dragon. After a long silence, the official looked at me.

“Young Master Jin.”

“Yes?”

“Are you certain he’s all right?”

After thinking it over, I opened my mouth.

“Probably.”

The space was so vast that it could have been called a castle rather than a residence. A man strode through it without hesitation.

Everyone who saw his tightly set lips and resolute gaze paid their respects.

“Greetings, Assistant Military Commissioner.”

He acknowledged them with a nod and quickened his pace.

After passing through a corridor lined with endless pillars, how long had he been walking? The man finally stopped when a massive iron gate engraved with a dragon appeared before him.

“Announce me.”

“Yes, sir.”

A commander of the palace guard saluted him and called out in a powerful voice.

“His Excellency Li Feng, Assistant Military Commissioner of Shanxi Province, entering!”

Before long, a voice answered from within.

“Let him enter.”

“…!”

The voice was neither as high and childish as a little boy’s nor as deep as a grown man’s.

The man—Li Feng—seemed to realize something. His eyebrows shot up just as the iron gate opened with a heavy groan.

Grrrnnng.

Beyond it lay an extravagantly decorated grand hall. Gold and silver treasures glittered in every direction, and a table large enough to seat dozens was laden with every delicacy from land and sea.

The sight would have left anyone else gaping. But Li Feng’s gaze remained fixed on a single point.

How is he here?

At the end of Li Feng’s gaze, a man seated at the head of the table smiled faintly.

Wrapped in dazzling red silk, the man spoke in a coy, lilting voice.

“Well, well. If it isn’t our Assistant Commissioner Li.”

Our Assistant Commissioner Li?

Li Feng bit down on his lips and performed a military salute.

“…Greetings, Deputy Military Commissioner.”

The Deputy Military Commissioner was a second-rank official, with only two such posts in each province.

Aside from the Military Commissioner, the supreme military commander, and Prince Shangshan, the City Lord, it was the highest position in the province. As deputy commander, he also wielded tremendous authority.

That was what the public knew. In truth, the man before him possessed even greater power.

That bastard deserves to be beaten to death.

A sycophant and corrupt official who used his glib tongue and petty tricks to blind the young prince’s eyes and ears while lining his own pockets. That was Li Feng’s assessment of him.

But even under Li Feng’s hostile gaze, the man’s smile never faltered.

“Assistant Commissioner Li, it’s been a while. Isn’t the atmosphere a little too tense? Did I perhaps do something to offend you?”

“…Of course not. I was merely surprised to find you in a place like this, Deputy Military Commissioner.”

“A place like this?”

“It is a gathering of martial artists from the martial world. They are rather rough people, so I was concerned that you might be uncomfortable, Deputy Military Commissioner.”

His words sounded considerate, but both men knew what he truly meant.

“Why would I? I like places like this. Besides, you’ve been awfully formal with my title. Just call me whatever you like. We’re close enough, aren’t we?”

“And what sort of relationship do we have?”

“The kind where we’d split even a single bean. True and loyal subjects who serve His Highness with all our hearts.”

Split a bean? True and loyal subjects?

Li Feng asked bluntly, “Then may I call you Eunuch Hong?”

Eunuch Hong’s smile stiffened for a moment.

With that single word, Li Feng had touched his sore spot.

“That’s… a little too familiar, don’t you think?”

“I only followed your instructions.”

“Well, this is a surprise. I had no idea Assistant Commissioner Li considered me that close.”

“I’m overwhelmed that you finally understand how I feel.”

“Assistant Commissioner Li.”

“Did you call, Eunuch Hong? Or would you prefer that I go back to calling you Deputy Military Commissioner?”

A heavy silence settled over the hall.

It was a long while before Eunuch Hong spoke again.

“Our Assistant Commissioner Li has improved quite a bit, hasn’t he?”

“Have I?”

“Yes. Compared to a few years ago, you’ve made remarkable progress.”

“I’ve learned many things thanks to you.”

“I thought you were only good with a sword, but now I see you’re good with your tongue, too. I’ll have to look at you differently.”

“I’m still nowhere near as skilled as a certain someone.”

Their gazes collided in midair. Amid the taut silence, Eunuch Hong smiled gently.

“Well, we can talk about that later… May I ask you one thing?”

His opponent was no pushover, but he had taken a step back. If Li Feng kept biting at him, he would only put himself at a disadvantage. He silently nodded.

“Ask.”

“You said you used to belong to Huashan, didn’t you?”

Li Feng paused. Huashan was a place he both missed and remembered with pain.

It had been nearly ten years since he had left Mount Hua, but the memories of that time still remained deep in his body and heart.

“Yes. I was a lay disciple.”

“And Huashan is in Shaanxi?”

He and Eunuch Hong were what one might call political enemies. For that very reason, they knew one another inside and out.

Eunuch Hong was neither careless nor stupid enough to ask about such a basic fact without a reason.

If anything, he was a crafty bastard with a hundred snakes writhing inside him.

That only made Li Feng more puzzled.

“That’s right. But why are you suddenly asking?”

“I’ve come to know a few people recently, and I wondered if you might know them, too.”

“Are they martial artists?”

“Yes. From Shaanxi, no less.”

“Don’t tell me they’re from Huashan…?”

“Oh, come on. If they were, I would have told you already.”

Li Feng sighed in relief.

In the end, he had left of his own accord, but Huashan was still the sect he would be proud of for the rest of his life. It was a tremendous relief that Huashan had not become entangled with a sycophant like Eunuch Hong.

“There are more than one or two sects in Shaanxi. And I didn’t go outside while training at the main sect, so even if I heard their names, I might not recognize them.”

“Is that so? Then perhaps you would recognize them if you saw their faces?”

“…?”

At the sight of Li Feng’s expression, Eunuch Hong picked up the chopsticks lying on the table.

“You asked earlier why I was here, didn’t you?”

The beautifully crafted silver chopsticks tapped against a wine cup.

Ping.

The clear sound spread through the hall.

Eunuch Hong smiled with his eyes at the bewildered Li Feng.

“I invited a few acquaintances. Famous and powerful martial artists whom His Highness would enjoy meeting.”

At that moment, a powerful shout rang out from beyond the iron gate.

“The Three Hands of Zhongnan request an audience!”

“The Three Hands of Zhongnan… The Zhongnan Sect!”

Li Feng’s complexion changed drastically.

Huashan and the Zhongnan Sect had been bitter rivals fighting for supremacy in Shaanxi for a full hundred years.

Eunuch Hong’s intentions were every bit as clear as the smile on his face.

“They’re fellow Shaanxi men, so I thought I’d arrange a gathering. You don’t mind, do you?”

Just as Li Feng clenched his fists, the massive iron gate opened and three imposing men strode into the hall.

One of them had a familiar face.

“Well, well. If it isn’t Li Feng of Huashan?”

Li Feng shuddered. The moment he saw that man’s face, the humiliating memory from ten years ago came rushing back.

“How did you get here?”

The sharp-eyed man answered casually.

“How else? When the Deputy Military Commissioner of Shanxi Province invites you, you have to come running even if it’s a thousand li away. Isn’t that right?”

“You’re too kind. I’m the one grateful that you accepted the invitation.”

Li Feng ground his teeth. Gong Ilhyuk, the third of the Three Hands of Zhongnan, grinned at him.

“Anyway, you’ve done well for yourself. Assistant Military Commissioner, someone like you… Huashan must have spread around quite a few silver nyang for you. Hmm?”

“How dare you insult Huashan?”

“Insult Huashan? You’re the one who insulted it. Ten years ago, who was it that fell to his knees after only a hundred or so exchanges with that magnificent Huashan martial arts?”

“You bastard!”

A thunderous shout burst from Li Feng’s mouth.

At the moment he glared at Gong Ilhyuk with eyes that seemed to pour out streams of flame, a third shout rang out from beyond the iron gate.

“The young prodigies of Shanxi Murim request an audience!”