Chapter 37

Chapter 36. A School of Martial Arts Even Beggars Wouldn't Pick Up! (1)

"......"

Gong Wonyeon quickly composed himself. They say that as long as you keep your wits about you, you can survive even if you're caught in a tiger's den.

"I don't understand what you mean."

"Huh? Look at this?"

Cheongmyeong snorted derisively.

"Does this guy think I'm blind? Do I look like someone who can't recognize the Supreme Sun Technique?"

"......"

Cheongmyeong sneered.

"Truly convenient. Convenient indeed. The person who runs a tavern in Huayin and collects debts in Huashan just happens to have learned the martial arts of Zhongnan? And not just that, but you've learned the Supreme Sun Technique very well?"

Sweat trickled down Gong Wonyeon's forehead. He was so shocked that he couldn't even feel the pain from where he had been hit.

'Damn it.'

He should have held back.

Even if it meant losing his head, using the Supreme Sun Technique was out of the question, especially in front of someone from Huashan!

A fatal mistake.

But could this be called a mistake?

If this guy hadn't pushed him so hard, and if he hadn't suddenly drawn his real sword and struck while Gong Wonyeon was dazed, he would have never used the Supreme Sun Technique, even if it meant dying.

If this was a coincidence, it was the worst kind. If it was planned, the depth of this guy's scheming was almost unimaginable.

"Did Zhongnan send you?"

"......"

Gong Wonyeon tightly shut his mouth.

At this point, no matter what he said, it wouldn't be an excuse. If he could turn the situation around with a cheap excuse, he would have, but that was no longer possible.

If he opened his mouth and gave away more information, it would be better to remain silent.

"Hmm? You're going to keep quiet?"

Cheongmyeong cracked his neck and approached Gong Wonyeon.

"Fine, suit yourself. That's also a matter of principle. I see it as a good choice. But there's one thing you're misunderstanding."

"......?"

"What is it?"

"I won't tell you."

"......"

Zhongnan was not an easy place to deal with. Although Zhongnan and Huashan had a long-standing enmity and their relationship wasn't good, Zhongnan was still one of the Nine Great Schools, and that couldn't be denied.

A school of that caliber wouldn't handle things carelessly. Cheongmyeong believed that the information Gong Wonyeon had was extremely limited, and even if he knew more, it wouldn't be reliable.

Knowing that he was associated with Zhongnan was enough. The rest was something Cheongmyeong and Huashan needed to figure out.

Of course, there was no need to tell Gong Wonyeon this.

"Ha, you guys. Even though the martial world used to be harsh, it wasn't despicable. But now, you guys from the Nine Great Schools are trying to ruin other schools with money, not martial arts? And through fraud? You're really doing a great job."

Gong Wonyeon couldn't maintain his composure and shouted.

"Hmph. From Huashan's perspective, this might be better, don't you think?"

"Huh?"

"You should know! Huashan has no hope now. Wealth? Money? Those are just secondary to a martial school. Huashan, having lost its martial arts, can never be the Huashan of the past. It's just a matter of whether it collapses quickly or slowly!"

"Hmm?"

Cheongmyeong listened to Gong Wonyeon with interest.

"I was just trying to hasten the inevitable end of a dying Huashan. It's something Huashan should be grateful for. You should know, shouldn't you? Huashan can't be revived! A school that has lost its lineage of martial arts is destined to wither."

"Who says so?"

"Can't you understand?"

"No, who says Huashan's lineage of martial arts has been cut off?"

"......"

Gong Wonyeon looked at Cheongmyeong with a blank expression.

If someone else had said this, he would have laughed it off. But the words from Cheongmyeong carried a different weight.

At least, to Gong Wonyeon, Cheongmyeong looked like a former high-ranking expert of Huashan.

"These guys are trying to cut off the lineage of a Huashan that's still alive and well. And whether Huashan lives or dies, it's still Huashan. What right do you have to bury a living Huashan? What authority do you have?"

"......"

"Anyway, those who talk a lot always come up with ridiculous arguments. If you had just said you were going to kill Huashan because it's despicable, I would have acknowledged it. If the Zhongnan guys had said that, I would have acknowledged it."

He had been through a lot.

The closer the neighbors, the more likely they are to clash. Just as diplomacy involves both friendliness and hostility, neighboring schools inevitably have conflicts. Huashan and Zhongnan had many similarities, being strong in secular practices and primarily using swords.

When two major schools of the same type are next to each other, one of them is bound to decline.

In the past, Cheongmyeong often fought with Zhongnan. To be precise, it was usually when Zhongnan started trouble and got beaten up by Cheongmyeong.

"I am not from Zhongnan!"

"Sure, sure."

"There seems to be a misunderstanding. The technique I just used is something I learned by chance."

"Ah, I see. Sure, sure. Let me tell you something amazing."

"......What is it?"

"I'm not from Huashan either."

"......"

"Make sense......"

"You, you!"

"......"

Cheongmyeong almost spat on the ground but stopped himself.

Ah, the mask. That would have been a disaster.

"Anyway, as a reward for showing me the Supreme Sun Technique, I'll show you something interesting. It will be very amusing if you can recognize it. If you can't, it will be a shame."

Cheongmyeong slowly drew his sword.

"Tell the one who sent you this clearly."

Cheongmyeong's aura changed.

The playful demeanor vanished. His previously hunched back straightened, and his drooping shoulders returned to their proper position.

A perfect posture, as if drawn in a picture.

Gong Wonyeon involuntarily opened his mouth when he saw it.

It felt like a breeze was blowing.

A fresh breeze accompanied by a deep plum blossom fragrance bloomed like an illusion.

"Plum blossoms emit their strongest fragrance when they bloom in the snow. Although it's winter now, the spirit of Huashan has not been severed. When spring comes, the plum blossoms will bloom abundantly on the mountains."

Gong Wonyeon saw it.

Cheongmyeong's sword tip slowly moved.

A tremor.

The movement, starting from a tiny tremor, soon turned into a large shake, and that large shake transformed into a sword trajectory that filled the sky like an illusion.

The sword tip, filling the sky, gave birth to vivid plum blossom petals.

As the harsh winter passed and the warm spring announced the blooming of plum blossoms on the mountains, the plum blossoms drawn by Cheongmyeong's sword tip covered the world.

'This is an illusion.'

The wind blew.

The plum blossoms, covering the sky like they were dancing in the spring breeze, began to bloom all at once. Soon, the petals floated up and gently landed on Gong Wonyeon's forehead.

The petals brushed past Gong Wonyeon, carrying his consciousness away like the wind. Until the very end, he didn't know what he was seeing.

Thud.

The sound of Gong Wonyeon, who had lost consciousness, falling to the ground echoed emptily. The plum blossoms that had covered the sky had already disappeared like a mirage.

Cheongmyeong, having sheathed his sword, turned around.

"Phew!"

Blood flowed from the corner of his mouth due to the excessive use of his energy. He spat out the blood that had risen to his mask and grimaced.

'I might die, really.'

Even with his damaged body, his internal energy was still insufficient. If he were the Cheongmyeong of the past, he could have done this with ease, but now it felt like all his internal energy was being drained by a single sword movement.

'With such a good foundation, I might die like this. Ah.'

He needed to come up with a plan. Cheongmyeong put his mask back on.

"Alright, then."

His gaze shifted from the fallen Gong Wonyeon to the merchants.

"......"

The merchants looked at Cheongmyeong as if they were seeing a ghost.

Why wouldn't they?

The harmony of drawing plum blossoms in the sky with a sword was something they had never seen or heard of. Even if they had heard of such high-level experts in Huashan in the past, they thought it was just an exaggerated legend.

But now, a human who shattered that legend stood before their eyes.

To the merchants, who had tried to swindle money from Huashan, Cheongmyeong was no different from a Grim Reaper.

"Who wants to take a beating?"

"......"

"Who wants to just leave?"

"Me!"

"I'll just leave!"

"Please let me live!"

Cheongmyeong nodded in approval.

"Good. Very cooperative."

The merchants rushed to the side. But of course, Cheongmyeong didn't plan to let them go so easily.

"Stop moving."

"......"

The merchants stopped in unison.

"If you all leave like this, how will I pull all these carts? Think about it, think about it!"

"......"

The merchants looked at Cheongmyeong with eyes full of grievance.

Did they have to consider the convenience of a bandit? Even if the world was upside down, this was too much.

But no one dared to argue.

"You."

"Yes!"

"From now on, each of you will check how much wealth is on your cart. The slowest one will lie down next to this guy."

No further words were needed. As soon as he finished speaking, the merchants rushed to their carts to count their wealth.

"Eighteen hundred taels!"

"Two thousand three hundred taels!"

"I have eight thousand......"

"What? You have that much wealth?"

"Is that important now? You idiot?"

They even argued among themselves, trying to report first.

Cheongmyeong frowned at the sight.

"Hey."

"Yes?"

"Did you include the value of the carts and horses?"

"......"

"Count again."

"Yes."

After some effort, the counting was finally done, and Cheongmyeong nodded.

"Then I'll borrow a horse. One of you go to the nearest inn and bring the money. I'll sell it for cash."

The merchants looked at Cheongmyeong with blank eyes.

They were seasoned in the world of money, but they had never seen someone like this.

"Bring the money in an anonymous bill. If you mark the bill and get caught, I'll kill you today. Got it?"

"Yes."

So meticulous.

"One of you, go."

"......But."

"What?"

One of the merchants asked.

"If the one who goes to the inn runs away, what will you do?"

Cheongmyeong chuckled.

"What will he do by running away?"

"......"

"Do you have money?"

"No."

"Your assets are seized, right?"

"Yes."

"Then what can you do by running away? If you want to eat, you'll have to come back, right?"

"......Then, if we report to the authorities......"

"Go ahead."

Cheongmyeong slightly lifted his leg and stomped the ground.

Thud!

The ground cracked.

"Instead, report and never come back. Run to the end of the continent. I'll catch that guy even if I die. Never come back. Never."

"......"

The merchants gave up on reporting at that moment.

Thinking about it, their families were still in Huayin. They couldn't think of a way to escape from this madman. It didn't seem like the authorities could catch him either.

"Go."

"......Yes."

Huashan, as a prestigious and benevolent school, was kind.

Yet, their misfortune stemmed from one thing: Huashan was benevolent, but not everyone in Huashan was.

Before the sun set that day, a masked man, holding a bill as thick as a book, climbed Huashan with a joyful smile. The wealth created by the sweat and tears of many people was thus respectfully stored in the greedy Taoist's warehouse.