Chapter 179

It really was New Year’s Day.

It had only been two days since Wipeng had given me strict instructions before I left the Jin Family of Taiyuan, yet I had completely forgotten.

Hyuk Mujin swallowed a hollow breath and spoke.

“W-What do we do?”

“What do you mean, what do we do? Even if we’d remembered, we wouldn’t have made it back in time.”

This was the Fire King we were talking about.

Considering the mood yesterday, if I’d told him I had family business and needed to leave, he would have sent me off with a hearty laugh.

Straight down the road to the underworld, of course.

“Great Hero Wipeng is going to kill me.”

I patted the ashen-faced Hyuk Mujin on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry. He can’t kill me.”

“Oh, me neither!”

“…”

Such was the sorrow of having no powerful backer.

Still, I had no intention of deliberately dragging my feet.

Today was the day the Jin Family of Taiyuan would rise as the undisputed ruler of Shanxi Province. The youngest son of the family couldn’t afford to be late.

“Pack your things. We’re leaving right now.”

Not that I had much to pack. One travel bundle was everything I owned.

We were ready in no time and headed downstairs. The inn had been decked out in red for New Year’s Day, and despite the early hour, it was bustling with people.

Two men stood out among the crowd.

“Oh, you’re up?”

“Tsk, tsk. Young fellows shouldn’t sleep so much.”

“Exactly. When I was young, there were plenty of days when I couldn’t even get one shichen of sleep.”

“One whole shichen? Why, back in my day…”

The two old men raised their hands in greeting, then went right back to passing wine cups between themselves.

Their flushed faces and the wine jar beside them showed they had already been drinking heavily this early in the day.

Hyuk Mujin, following behind me, whispered in a small voice,

“What kind of combination is that?”

“No idea.”

One was a giant of an old man, larger than most strapping young men. The other was so small and frail that a stiff breeze might have carried him away.

The Fire King was one thing.

But when did Jang Taebo get here?

Had he come because of the commission?

In any case, the two old men—each a master in his own field—seemed to have grown quite close.

“It’s pretty chaotic in here. Can’t we just slip out?”

“Slip out, my ass. Don’t you remember getting knocked unconscious with a duck bone yesterday?”

“That was a duck bone? Damn, no wonder my skull was ringing.”

“If we pretend nothing happened and leave, he’ll crack it open.”

“I’d rather avoid that.”

“So? Want to make a run for it?”

Hyuk Mujin sighed gloomily.

“Phew. What a rotten way to start the new year.”

I couldn’t have agreed more. No one in the world would want to run into Fire King Jeok Cheongang first thing on New Year’s Day.

“Grandpas, do you have any dumplings?”

“There’s plenty of meat, too. Eat up.”

“Yaaay!”

…Except that guy.

Hyuk Mujin and I trudged forward with heavy hearts, like oxen being led to the slaughterhouse.

Cheongpung, who was shoveling food into his mouth at the speed of light, beamed and held out several plates.

“Hewe! It’s delishush! Try shome!”

“…You eat plenty.”

“Thanksh, I will!”

Someone like him was a Peak master. The sheer unfairness of reality filled me with despair for the future of the Murim.

Jang Taebo spoke up.

“So, what are you all planning to do now?”

“We’re going back to our family first. We have some business to take care of.”

“Ah, I see. You said there was going to be a gathering at the Jin Family of Taiyuan?”

At present, every move the Jin Family of Taiyuan made was a hot topic throughout Shanxi Province.

The Jin Family of Taiyuan, once treated as an old tiger past its prime, had reclaimed the throne of Shanxi Murim after many years. It was only natural that the interest and expectations surrounding them were extraordinary.

Even Jang Taebo, a homebody living in a tiny place like Jang Family Village, had heard about it.

“That’s all anyone talks about whenever people gather these days. Even ordinary people with nothing to do with the Murim are flocking there for the spectacle. That tells you everything.”

“Will that many people really come?”

“A grand feast always draws all sorts of hangers-on. Shanxi Province may be a frontier region, but this is about becoming the hegemon of an entire province. I may not be a martial artist, but I’ve seen and heard enough in my time. Just wait and see. Ah, and…”

Jang Taebo lowered his voice.

“Don’t worry about the commission.”

The commission.

His words suddenly reminded me of something I hadn’t had the chance to ask before.

“By the way, is there anything else you need?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, there must be something.”

Even the neighborhood laundromat charged a fee for repairs. Jang Taebo was a master artisan renowned throughout the world. He might not have been as skilled as he was in his prime, but I didn’t believe his abilities had vanished over the past ten years.

His work had to command an appropriate price…

Realizing what I meant, Jang Taebo stroked his white beard.

“You mean you want to compensate me?”

“To be honest, I can’t give you as much as you might be expecting.”

“Then just give me ten thousand nyang.”

Ten thousand nyang was a hundred silver nyang. It was certainly an enormous sum, but considering his fame, it felt like nothing more than a special discount.

I nodded readily. It wasn’t my money, anyway.

“I’ll prepare it and send it to your home.”

“Ten thousand silver nyang? You’d have to tear out every last pillar holding up the Jin Family of Taiyuan.”

“…Ten thousand silver nyang?”

“Of course. Did my worth look that cheap to you?”

“That’s a whopping million nyang.”

“Not a whopping million. A mere million. You’ll be getting the greatest divine weapon under heaven. What does a little money matter?”

“…”

Of course it mattered.

How much would a million nyang be worth in the real world? Hundreds of billions of won? Trillions?

Jang Taebo let out a quiet laugh at my expression.

“I don’t need it.”

“I’m sorry, but would you consider a quick deal for ten thousand nyang—pardon?”

“I said I don’t need it. What would I do with that much money? I couldn’t spend it all before I died. Having an opportunity like this come my way while I’m still alive is payment enough.”

Was this the spirit of a true artisan?

What a shining example, this Jang Taebo. Every blacksmith under heaven should follow his example and Taebo accordingly.

As I trembled with emotion, Hyuk Mujin cut in with an admiring look.

“Then why don’t you take the ten thousand nyang for now and give it to me?”

That bastard could write an autobiography. He could call it A Hundred Ways to Get Yourself Beaten to Death.

I smacked him on the back of the head, then bowed politely to Jang Taebo.

“Then I’ll leave it in your hands.”

“I’m the one who should be asking a favor. I can’t promise how long it will take, but I’ll create something that will make the world tremble. Until then, make sure you acquire the strength and qualifications worthy of wielding it.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“Good. Then that settles it. I’ll have to place my trust in you.”

Jang Taebo nodded, then paused.

“Ah. Could I ask one more favor?”

“…?”

“Build my house again. It all burned down, and I don’t even have anywhere to sleep.”

The home he had bought after retiring—the precious place where he had spent his golden years in peace—had vanished overnight.

At the sorrow in Jang Taebo’s voice, my gaze drifted to the side of its own accord.

Jeok Cheongang, who had been quietly sipping his wine while we talked, looked up.

“What are you staring at?”

There was no trace of the emotional, solemn Jeok Cheongang from last night. I subtly averted my gaze.

“…Nothing.”

“If you have something to say, say it. This old man isn’t so petty.”

“Are you really sure?”

“Go ahead.”

The moment he finished speaking, the space beneath the table began to heat up.

It wasn’t as though the innkeeper were a modern man who had brought in an electric heater…

Fuck. Flame Divine Palm.

Tears welled in my eyes as I answered.

“I was just thinking that you looked a good ten years younger than usual today.”

Jeok Cheongang frowned.

“What? Ten years?”

Damn it. Subtracting ten from a hundred still left ninety.

I hurriedly revised my answer.

“Twenty years…”

“Twenty years?”

“Thirty years…”

In the space of barely three seconds, Jeok Cheongang had grown thirty years younger. He nodded in satisfaction.

“I thought you were a fellow with nothing but shit in your head, but you do have some fairly plausible thoughts after all.”

“…”

Hyuk Mujin looked like he had something to say, but he clamped his mouth shut.

Apparently, he had no desire to make A Hundred Ways to Get Yourself Beaten to Death his final work.

Instead, he kept poking me in the side, looking desperate to leave this place immediately.

Of course, I feel the same way.

But before we could go, there was one last thing I needed to settle.

I spoke in the most respectful tone I could manage.

“I have several items in my possession.”

Jeok Cheongang, his face flushed as he tipped back his wine cup, let out a quiet laugh.

“Were you ever planning to return them?”

“Of course I did.”

“That’s right. If you don’t return them, you’ll see something ugly.”

“…”

The old man could see straight through people’s hearts like a ghost.

I forced a smile and placed the items I had already taken out on the table.

The Flame Divine Palm martial arts manual I had obtained from Jopil, and the Unnamed Sword made from Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron.

“As you already know, Great Hero Jeok, the Blazing Flame Divine Pill…”

“You gobbled it up.”

“Yes. That’s right.”

“But…”

A wrinkled finger tapped against the table. Jeok Cheongang continued in a dry voice.

“Where is the Treasured Jade?”

“Pardon?”

“The treasured jade. The jade.”

Treasured jade? As in some sort of treasure or gemstone?

Jeok Cheongang didn’t seem like the type to obsess over ordinary jewelry, so it had to be extremely important.

But since I hadn’t even known it existed, I could only stare at him in bewilderment.

“These are the only things I received.”

“Received? You didn’t collect them yourself?”

“No. There were circumstances. They were handed to me right after I woke up.”

“Do you suspect any of the people involved?”

Gong Yacheong and Socheon had handed Jopil’s belongings over to me. Neither of them was the sort to quietly pocket something behind everyone else’s back.

The same went for the members of the reconnaissance squad who had been there. I didn’t know what had happened, but that didn’t change my trust in them.

“They wouldn’t have. No, absolutely not.”

Jeok Cheongang studied me for a moment before speaking.

“Then it must be one of two things. Someone deceived you, or that child lost it.”

“…”

“What a nuisance. This has become troublesome.”

Jeok Cheongang had likely returned to the world not only to find his Disciple, but also to recover the Fire Gate Clan’s treasures that had been scattered because of him.

The Treasured Jade seemed to be one of them.

It was a treasure that even the Fire King was willing to endure the trouble of searching for at all costs.

Damn it. I never even got to see it.

Just as a creeping sense of danger began to outweigh my curiosity about what the jade actually was, Jeok Cheongang spoke.

“It can’t be helped. Keep them for now.”

That casual remark brought my thoughts to a complete halt.

Wait. Did he mean…

“You want me to keep these?”

“Yes.”

“Both of them?”

“All three. Have you forgotten the one in your stomach? Anything that originated from our sect must be reclaimed, one way or another.”

“…!”

“I’m joking.”

“Phew.”

“Tsk, tsk. You’re still young, but your nerve is already the size of a bean.”

Bean or cannonball, I didn’t care.

I wanted nothing more to do with that terrifying old man. Ever.

I took a deep breath and opened my mouth.

“I’m sorry, but I’ll have to decline—”

“If you refuse, I’ll reclaim them right now. All three.”

“…”

“This time, I’m serious.”

Once again, the space beneath the table grew scorching hot. There was no need to guess which technique it was.

What the fuck?

I was trying to return the items to their rightful owner. And I couldn’t even do that?

Overcome with resentment and indignation, I demanded, “Why are you doing this to me?”

“Do you expect an old man like me to carry those cumbersome things around? I don’t have the strength for that.”

“What if someone takes them from me?”

“Then this old man will kill you.”

“What if I learn the martial art?”

“Then you’ll die even more painfully.”

What kind of bullshit situation was this?

Leaving me standing there in a daze, the Fire King rose from his seat.

Cheongpung, who was still cramming food into his mouth, looked up.

“Gwandpa, awe you leaving?”

“…You’re even worse than your grandfather. Slow down.”

After exchanging a silent glance of farewell with Jang Taebo, Jeok Cheongang turned away and tossed out one meaningful remark.

“Let’s meet again soon.”

I didn’t want to see him.

Ever.