Chapter 313

Huashan’s Lone Crane, Baek Museong.

There was no one in Shaanxi—or anywhere in the Murim—who didn’t know that name.

Baek Museong was the direct Disciple of Heavenly Sword True Person¹ and had been called the future of Huashan since childhood.

Sharp-eared, gossip-loving busybodies traded rumors about the Sword Saint’s youngest Disciple, but even they never doubted that Baek Museong would one day become the Sect Leader of Huashan.

“I hear the Huashan Divine Dragon’s martial prowess has already surpassed that of the Elders of the Nine Sects and One Gang.² He truly is a genius who comes along perhaps once in a century.”

“Even so, no matter what anyone says, Huashan’s Lone Crane is bound to be the next Sect Leader. Baek Museong is simply of a different caliber. He was born with everything a Sect Leader needs.”

“That’s true. Does he lack martial skill? Character? If not him, who else could possibly become Sect Leader?”

The people drinking and chatting on the first floor of Xi’an Tower had no idea that the subject of their conversation was passing right behind them.

“I’ve long heard of your renown, Great Hero Baek. It’s an honor to meet you.”

“Great Hero? Please, you flatter me.”

“Not at all. I’m merely calling a Great Hero a Great Hero. How could that possibly be flattery?”

Baek Museong could only smile awkwardly at the Captain of the Guards’ fervent gaze.

Such attention was nothing new to him.

As Huashan’s standing rose after faltering in the wake of Sword Saint Mae Jonghak’s withdrawal from the world, so too did the burden on Baek Museong’s shoulders grow heavier.

The Sect Leader.

For Baek Museong, who was only in his early thirties, it was a distant and weighty title.

He was inwardly shaking his head at the thought when the Captain of the Guards stopped walking.

“This is the place.”

“This is…?”

“Even in Xi’an Tower, which we proudly call the finest establishment in Shaanxi, there is only one private annex.”

Baek Museong looked around at the garden adorned with jade and the interior filled with luxurious furnishings, his expression troubled.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t have enough money on hand to stay in a private annex. Could you provide me with a quiet room instead?”

“Haha, you’re every bit as frugal as I heard.”

The Captain of the Guards continued with a hearty laugh.

“Please don’t worry. The proprietor has repeatedly instructed us that whenever a guest from Huashan arrives, we are to provide the utmost hospitality and charge them nothing.”

“The proprietor said that?”

“Yes. There was some trouble with the Zhongnan Sect last autumn, but it was resolved with Huashan’s help. The other two members of the Three Plum Blossom Elites—your Junior Brothers—played a major role.”

“Ah, I see. It happened while I was in secluded training, so I knew little about it.”

“To be honest, I only heard about it myself. I’ve barely been working here a month. Haha.”

Only then did Baek Museong nod in understanding.

It wasn’t as though he had spent the past year idling.

Meeting Cheongpung, a prodigy for the ages, and Jin Taekyung had come as both a tremendous shock and a fresh source of motivation. That was why Baek Museong had decided to enter secluded training for an entire year.

It was time well spent.

The insight he had gained during his training had made him stronger and given him greater depth.

And he wasn’t the only thing that had changed. Huashan’s position was now incomparable to what it had been a year ago.

Even the government offices, which were heavily staffed by Zhongnan’s lay Disciples, now turned to Huashan first whenever trouble arose.

If Master’s letter is true, that’s only natural.

Five days earlier, a messenger eagle sent by his Master, Heavenly Sword True Person, had brought astonishing news.

The blood calamity at Shaolin. The death of Dharma King Hong Dao. And the report that Sword Saint Mae Jonghak was being considered as a candidate for the Alliance Leader of the new Murim Alliance, which was being revived after decades.

“In any case, everyone around me is in an uproar. Even my friends have been asking me about it. They say their children seem to have a talent for martial arts and wonder whether they might be accepted into Huashan, if only as lay Disciples.”

Baek Museong recognized the meaning behind the Captain of the Guards’ pointed gaze and smiled bitterly.

The man looked well past forty. He, too, must be a parent who wanted his child to enter Huashan.

But Baek Museong pretended not to notice.

“Well, if fate brings them together, perhaps it will happen. But does a child truly need to learn martial arts? At that age, growing up healthy is enough.”

“……I see.”

As the Captain of the Guards’ face fell, Baek Museong murmured inwardly.

If you knew about the bloody storm that will soon sweep in, you wouldn’t look so disappointed.

Rumors about the blood calamity at Shaolin had already begun to leak out here and there.

But the existence of Dark Heaven remained a top-secret known only to a handful of people. As one of those few, Baek Museong could sense what was coming.

A bloody wind would soon sweep through the Murim. Dark clouds would cover the sky, and thousands upon tens of thousands of weapons would tumble across the ground alongside their owners.

The wails of children who had lost their parents and parents who had lost their children would echo from every direction.

I’ll stop that from happening. I will—and Huashan will.

Surely everyone in the Murim felt the same.

The Captain of the Guards was tilting his head at the sudden heaviness in Baek Museong’s expression when—

“Where is the chief manager? Chief Manager!”

“Young Hero, the chief manager has stepped away for a moment. So please, calm yourself—”

“Calm myself? After being treated with such disrespect, do I look like I’m in any state to calm down?”

“A-as I explained, the private annex is already occupied. We’ll show you to a special room, so please calm down.”

“Shut up! I must have the private annex today, so get out of my way!”

“Oh, Young Hero!”

Bang! Crack!

The shouting drew closer amid the clamor. The Captain of the Guards knitted his brows.

“I apologize for showing you such an unpleasant scene. It seems my subordinates have failed to handle the matter properly.”

“Please, think nothing of it. I understand completely.”

No matter how carefully Xi’an Tower selected its guests, it was still a pleasure house. All sorts of insects were bound to swarm a flower garden.

“Still, it’s barely noon, and he already sounds quite drunk.”

“It happens from time to time. He appears to be the son of some powerful family, but we’ll settle the matter and send him home. Great Hero Baek, you needn’t concern yourself.”

Baek Museong let out a hearty laugh and shook his head.

“Haha, I’m not so sure. You’d better remain here.”

“Pardon?”

“He doesn’t seem to be an ordinary scion of a powerful family.”

“What do you mean…?”

The Captain of the Guards faltered. Amid the continuing uproar, he had sensed someone approaching rapidly.

A martial artist!

As the situation grew more serious by the second, the cries of the guards protecting the inner courtyard rang out alongside hurried footsteps.

“Stop!”

“You cannot pass beyond this point!”

Xi’an Tower was frequented by high officials and powerful nobles, so the quality of its guards was correspondingly high. Yet even those battle-tested First Rate martial artists were no match for the drunken man’s rampage.

“You lowly Third Rate trash from wandering martial artist backgrounds dare…”

“Gah!”

Whoosh! Thud-thud-thud!

Short cries of alarm from the guards and the fast, powerful sounds of impacts rang out. In an instant, the area outside the private annex fell silent.

Then rough, unsteady footsteps began to approach, driving the silence away.

He took down six First Rate martial artists in an instant while that drunk?

A master—and not just any master. A Peak master.

Just as the Captain of the Guards’ face hardened and his hand moved toward his sword hilt, Baek Museong gave a small shake of his head.

“I think I should handle this.”

“Great Hero Baek, that’s…”

“It’s all right. We’ve met several times before. He’ll back down for my sake, if nothing else.”

“You mean…?”

“Our connection goes back several generations. Ah, of course…”

Baek Museong scratched his cheek and added,

“It isn’t exactly a harmonious connection.”

“……!”

At that moment, a thought flashed through the Captain of the Guards’ mind like lightning.

First came the words Zhongnan Sect. Then the name of a man.

“C-could it be?”

He had only been the Captain of the Guards at Xi’an Tower for a little over two weeks, but he had already heard so many rumors about that man that his ears ached.

A man whose temperament was as extraordinary as the sect he came from.

The Captain of the Guards grimaced and was about to speak the man’s name when—

Boom!

The door of the private annex, made from sturdy blackwood, exploded. Splinters flew in every direction.

Baek Museong smiled faintly at the young man approaching with a staggering gait and a face flushed red with alcohol.

“It’s been a long time. Have you been well?”

At the same moment—

“Why are you here?”

The face of Hyuk Sopyung, the Zhongnan One Dragon,³ twisted like that of a fiend.

“Wow! Wowww!”

“Please stop shouting. Everyone’s staring.”

“Benefactor! Candied fruit over there!”

“That damn candied fruit. Aren’t you sick of it yet?”

“No!”

“Then just open your own shop!”

“Can the candied-fruit vendor come with us all the way to Sichuan?”

“No, you lunatic…”

“They sell thin noodles over there! They say the broth is made with beef!”

Cheongpung, you little bastard. You’re like a rubber ball that could bounce off in any direction without warning…

I quickly grabbed Cheongpung by the back of his neck as he scampered toward a roadside food stall.

“Please, let’s just act like human beings. That’s all I’m asking. Like human beings!”

“Candied fruit… thin noodles…”

“Just wait a little longer, and I’ll feed you until your belly bursts!”

“Really?”

“How many times do I have to say it? So please shut your mouth and follow me quietly, okay?”

Of course, I wouldn’t be feeding him with my money. It would be Huashan’s money, but that was all the same in the end.

We were supposed to pass straight through here, too.

According to our original schedule, there hadn’t been any need to stop in Xi’an at all.

But before we left, Heavenly Sword True Person, the Sect Leader of Huashan, had asked us to stop by Xi’an. Since it was Cheongpung’s hometown, we had decided to pass through while we were at it.

We had been pushing ourselves for nearly seven days and nights without eating or washing properly. I also wanted to enjoy some hospitality and get at least one full day of rest.

I was told Huashan’s Lone Crane, Baek Museong, would be waiting for us.

It had already been more than a year since I’d last seen him.

Before I left for Anhui with Jeok Cheongang, Baek Museong had said this to me.

“Contact me whenever you come to Shaanxi. I’ll treat you properly. Haha.”

When he promised me the full course, I’d wondered if the guy was from Busan,⁴ but apparently it hadn’t been empty talk.

At least, judging by the fact that we were meeting like this today.

“By the way, where’s Xi’an Tower?”

A passerby I’d stopped had told me we only needed to follow the main road straight ahead. But why was the street so crowded? I couldn’t see the end of it.

As I looked around, a finger caked in black grime pointed toward a building in the distance.

“That is Xi’an Tower.”

“Where? Oh, you’re right. How did you know?”

Gung Gibang, the future boss of all beggars, answered proudly.

“It is the finest place to beg. Even the food they leave behind and throw away is fit for a sumptuous feast, and because people of high status come and go, they give plenty of alms. Every beggar knows this place.”

“……”

So it was a Beggars’ Sect hotspot.

I shook my head and headed toward Xi’an Tower.

When we reached its enormous main entrance, wide enough for ten people to pass through at once, a guard who appeared to belong to Xi’an Tower bowed his head.

“I’m sorry, but we’re closed today.”

“……What? Is it a day off?”

“Not exactly. A slight problem arose during business hours.”

“Oh.”

I hadn’t expected that.

I glanced to the side and saw Cheongpung looking as though he was about to burst into tears.

Scratching my head, I spoke to the guard.

“Isn’t there any way around it? We had an appointment today. His name is Baek Museong. I was told you’d know him if I gave you his name.”

“Again, I’m sorry, but at the moment— Excuse me? Did you say Great Hero Baek Museong?”

“Yes. Baek Museong, Huashan’s Lone Crane.”

Cheongpung called out desperately.

“Martial Nephew Baek! Where are you, Martial Nephew Baek? Can you hear my stomach growling?”

The guard looked back and forth between us, then flung open the tightly closed main gate.

“I’ll escort you to the private annex immediately!”

What the hell?

Why the sudden change in attitude?

Did Baek Museong stand us up?

My guess was wrong.

We followed the guard as he raced ahead almost fast enough to fly and arrived at a nearly devastated private annex.

Baek Museong was waiting for us there, sword drawn.

Wow. This really is the full course.

This kind of shit makes me sick of being a martial artist.