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Chapter 265
Chapter 265. Parading in Brocade at Night (6)
Dong-ryong’s sword sharply thrust toward a vital acupoint.
Geum-pyo stepped through the Taeul Eighty-Thousand Divine Steps and desperately turned his body.
RIIIP.
His clothes were cut away by a hair’s breadth, but he did not think he had dodged it.
W̆ е̊b̂ ňò ṽ е̂ l̊ E̊ň ǔmâ
Because he had seen Dong-ryong subtly twist his hand at the very end.
“Haaah!”
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He drew up the Taeul True Scripture and unleashed the Twin Heaven Sword Formula.
SHRIRIRIRIRING.
Dozens of illusion swords and true swords dominated Dong-ryong’s eight directions and swept in upon him.
Normally, he should have had to watch the sight of his younger brother being caught in a storm of blades, bleeding as he was torn apart. Yet blue sword qi surged upward, cutting across that storm of blades.
W̄е b n̆ о̃ v̊ ěl Enǔ ṁ а
BOOM BOOM BOOM!
Amid the Twin Heaven Sword Formula, shattered to pieces by the sword qi, Dong-ryong rushed in as though folding space itself.
He deflected the sword qi Geum-pyo desperately fired with the heavy saber in his left hand and closed the distance by the shortest path.
Geum-pyo grimaced.
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That damned Heavenly Killing Star!
『The talent of a Heavenly Killing Star whose killing intent has been perfectly softened is not something an ordinary human can approach.』
Wеbñ о v́ ѐl̈ Е̇ ňum̂a
A line he had seen in a book stored within the Ten-Thousand-Book Repository came to mind.
Even so, the heart of an elder brother who did not want to lose to his younger brother would sometimes deny even truth itself.
“Haaaaap!”
The Taeul True Scripture, drawn up to an extreme, made his martial robes swell as though they would burst. Ten Thousand Swords formed in the air and aimed for Dong-ryong’s death acupoints.
SHRIRIRIRIRING.
The two Ten Thousand Swords created nearly a hundred illusion swords, and the Taeul Eighty-Thousand Divine Steps confused the eye with more than ten afterimages.
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With such keenly tempered blades, illusion and reality would be impossible to distinguish.
After all, driven into an extreme situation, the Heavenly Killing Star should have had no reason left to discern the true body.
However.
SHRIRIRIRIK!
The talent of a Heavenly Killing Star was not so shallow.
An instinctive desire to kill.
Wѐ ḃn̂o ṽ_е ĺ Е̊ ń ům а
Efficiency for the next killing.
A terrible obsession with and craving for murder crushed all ordinary things.
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Like one seeking water in endless thirst, like one desperate to breathe while drowning beneath water that threatened to take his breath away.
The desire to kill overcame all of it.
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!
Far from distinguishing illusion swords from true swords, Dong-ryong accepted them head-on and shot in by the shortest route. His heavy saber stopped abruptly just before it cut off Geum-pyo’s neck.
E n u m̊а
“……Haa, haa, haa.”
The coldness of the blade climbed along the thin skin of his nape.
“……Hehe, Brother, I won!”
Having returned to his usual foolish self, Dong-ryong smiled brightly and rejoiced in his victory.
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Idiot. Had he forgotten that this was not the only time, and that he had been winning continuously lately?
“Yes, well done!”
Е num̄а
When Geum-pyo stroked Dong-ryong’s head, the boy burrowed even deeper into his eldest brother’s embrace, as if pleased.
For a brief moment, Geum-pyo envied the tremendous talent his opponent possessed, but soon smiled.
Because that opponent was someone he could not possibly hate.
Just then.
“So this is where everyone was.”
“Brother Eun-ho!”
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At Eun-ho’s appearance, which had become difficult to see lately after he became an officer of the Representative Delegation, Dong-ryong scurried over and threw himself into his arms.
Then he quickly turned his head this way and that, searching for someone.
“Where is Eldest Senior Brother?”
“He went to Mantongbu, saying there was something he had to receive.”
“To Mantongbu?”
It was around half a year into his Academy life when Eun-ho realized that an ordinary Academy student had no reason to go to Mantongbu.
Ёń ûm̊ а̂. і̃ ď
And around that time, he had also learned just how remarkable Mantongbu was, and that most Academy students wanted to enter Mantongbu after graduating from the Academy.
From that perspective, whenever he thought about how impressive Eldest Senior Brother was for constantly going in and out of Mantongbu as if it were nothing, he felt astonished.
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Yet because there had been so many extraordinary events until now, he simply found himself accepting it as natural.
Otherwise, he felt he could not stay sane while facing the things Eldest Senior Brother experienced on a daily basis.
As Geum-pyo brushed off the torn hem of his clothes, he asked as though accustomed to it.
“What is it this time?”
Е̌ n̊ ů mā_
“I do not know. Has Eldest Senior Brother ever explained those things one by one?”
Eun-ho grumbled in disappointment.
In one way, however, he could understand Eldest Senior Brother’s heart.
Eldest Senior Brother was always carrying the burden alone.
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For their sake, and for the sake of the future disciples of Taeul Sect, he walked without hesitation along a perilous line.
Even while facing danger that could drag him into a bottomless mire if he misplaced just one step, he had never once snapped at them, his Junior Brothers.
Ѐnu_mà
“It must be because we are still not reliable enough.”
Because he had no expectations, he did not even get angry.
“Hoo…….”
There was still a long road ahead.
Before worrying about the path Taeul Sect and he himself had to walk, he still had a very long way to go just to catch up to Eldest Senior Brother.
As Eun-ho briefly sank into such thoughts, he suddenly seemed to remember something and held out a carrier pigeon letter.
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“What is that?”
“The results sheet for this end-of-term evaluation. It was in the dormitory, so I brought it.”
Many things had happened in between, but all three brothers had still prepared faithfully for the written exams.
Dong-ryong’s face brightened as he accepted the results sheet.
“Wow! Brothers, I have two Grade A evaluations!”
“Let me see…… These are all tests related to actual combat duels. I told you to study tactics and strategy too. Otherwise, you will receive disadvantages during later assignments.”
Ě ṅ ǔ m̂ ӑ.і̂ d̀
“Hiing. But written exams are hard……”
Eun-ho shouted fiercely.
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“What is hard about them? You only have to memorize exactly what the instructors pointed out! Honestly, the bastards who receive Grade E evaluations might as well have stones in their heads. They told us everything, so how could anyone still receive a Grade E…… Those bastards would be better off just going home. If rock-headed fools like that take command, the entire unit under them will be wiped out.”
Dong-ryong, who had been so triumphant only moments ago because he had defeated Geum-pyo, let his shoulders droop.
“……All right. I will work harder.”
“Remember this! Only turtle-headed fools receive Grade E evaluations.”
Ẁ е̄ b̀ n о vеĺ Ėn̆û m ã
Eun-ho furrowed his brow even more and added,
“If there is anyone in our Lee family who receives a Grade E evaluation, I will tell Father to strike him from the family register.”
“……Hiing, I understand.”
Soon, Eun-ho turned his head toward Geum-pyo, who had been silent for some time.
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“Brother Geum-pyo. You say something too.”
“H-Hm?”
E n̆ ù m̌å
“Say something to Dong-ryong.”
At Eun-ho’s urging, Geum-pyo stared blankly at the results sheet in his hand, then raised his head.
“Ah, me? Is it truly all right for me to say such things to Young Master Dong-ryong, Sir Eun-ho?”
“…….”
At an ominous premonition, Eun-ho strode over and snatched the results sheet away.
And on that results sheet—
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“……Insane!”
……the character for Grade E was written three times.
A certain Geum-pyo, looking at Lee Eun-ho, said nothing even afterward.
“How did you decide to handle the remaining supplies?”
“For now, we are planning to transfer next year’s allocated supplies to the Sichuan Branch in advance……”
“Those bastards will process them as leftover goods and apply for new supplies again. Close the records in advance so they cannot do that!”
Wė bn̂ о́ vel Еn u m̈а̃
“The injured……”
“I told you to reject transport for the injured!”
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“But the injured say they want to return to the Alliance and receive treatment……”
“Tell them to walk back on their own feet if they want to come back! Do they even know how much an Escort Agency carriage costs?!”
“Deputy Department Head, complaints are flooding in from the warriors currently on the move……”
I knew Mantongbu was always busy, but today’s atmosphere was quite different.
Ӗ n ůmā
It was almost like wartime.
Then again, considering that the command center grew even busier after a war than during one, this atmosphere was only natural.
“The Grand Strategist intends to use this atmosphere.”
Honestly, what a master of schemes he was.
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If I had not lived two lives, I would have had my nose cut off while my eyes were open.
“He deliberately calls the other party in at his busiest hour.”
W̊e b̈n̄о v̆е̇l Е̄ň u̇ ma
I had once heard that this was a method often used by high-value debtors.
Creditors who felt apologetic upon seeing how busy the other party was would get swept up in the atmosphere and fail to properly collect what they were owed.
A short while later, Jegal So-myeong entered, huffing in irritation.
“Those fools. There is no getting through to them.”
“You have arrived?”
When the person called Deputy Department Head approached Jegal So-myeong, he threw the report in his hand down onto the floor.
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“Write this again! Bring me something persuasive enough that the Elder Council bastards will shut their mouths and nod!”
“M-My apologies.”
As though his anger had not yet cooled, Jegal So-myeong swept his gaze around, and just as our eyes were about to meet—
“And why is the air so stale in here? Open the windows!”
That old man. Did he just pretend not to see me?
“Yes, sir!”
W.е̌b n̂о̂ v̈ ё l E n_u mа
At Jegal So-myeong’s thunderous command, the members of Mantongbu jumped as though lightning had struck and began moving.
Jegal So-myeong then tried to attend to another matter before pretending he had just discovered me, frowning.
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“What are you doing here…… Ah, was it today?”
That wily old snake.
But I was not someone who would lose in worldly tact or a battle of nerves either.
I bowed my head politely.
Еṅ u m̄ а̌
“If you are busy, shall I come another time?”
“No need. I will only grow busier from now on, so it would be better to finish quickly today.”
Jegal So-myeong roughly closed the door and sat down.
After quickly reading the report in one hand, stamping it, and pushing it aside, Jegal So-myeong opened his mouth.
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“I am busy, so I would like to skip the formalities and finish this simply.”
“Yes, I also have no desire to disturb you.”
Ѐn̈ u̇ m̀ ӓ
“What do you want?”
Jegal So-myeong spoke while reading documents without even meeting my gaze.
Up to this point, it was exactly as Sojeong Squad’s Hwang Gi-yeong, a former loan shark, had described.
He had said that if someone showed such a deliberately dismissive attitude, the creditor would be overwhelmed by the other party’s momentum and find it difficult to bring up money.
Indeed, I could not easily bring myself to say the things I had prepared.
“What I want is……”
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“Briefly. Do not add needless words.”
“Ah, yes.”
Fortunately, Hwang Gi-yeong had been experienced in debt collection, and I had heard countless stories about his past over drinks.
The first step in dealing with such a troublesome debtor was to make the debtor clearly realize exactly how much money he owed.
And the best way to make him recognize the amount of the debt was……
“Please allow the Great Heaven Merchant Guild to handle the supplies for the Murim Alliance branches in Jiangsu Province, Zhejiang Province, and Jiangxi Province. Also, among the items in the Gold Jade Treasury, I want the Blue Dragon Sword.”
Ѐ n_ūḿа . і̃ď
……to demand more money than the amount one was owed.
Stillness.
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“…….”
Jegal So-myeong, who had not looked at me once since I entered, stared at me quietly.
“Are you, by any chance, insane?”
“What do you mean?”
Еňu mа . і d̂
“Do you know what you just asked for?”
I calmly shrugged.
“Did you not ask what I wanted?”
“Ha ha! Why not simply ask for the position of Murim Alliance Leader instead?”
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“Can you give it to me?”
“Do not speak nonsense!”
Е n̂u m̂ ӓ
“I merely considered the appropriate compensation for what I accomplished.”
“The compensation for what you accomplished?”
When one demanded more than what the debtor had borrowed, the debtor would try to sit at the negotiation table of his own accord.
After all, if he made one wrong move, he might have to pay back money he had not even used.
“What you accomplished was splendid. But that does not mean it was enough for you to devour three provinces entirely.”
Just like Jegal So-myeong right now, glaring at me after pushing the report aside.
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“Then what degree of compensation do you think is appropriate?”
He thought for a moment, then opened his mouth.
“I hear Great Heaven Merchant Guild has expanded its influence to the Mount Tianmu area. I will allow it to handle the supplies of the Hangzhou Branch.”
“That is not receiving compensation. Even if left alone, our guild can expand to the Hangzhou Branch on its own strength.”
“Doing the work of the Murim Alliance is only natural for a member of the Alliance.”
“To be precise, I am not an Alliance member. I went to the Black Thought Alliance in exchange for doing work for Mantongbu.”
Ẅе̌b̆n оv̆е́ l̃ Ӗ n ů m̂ ӓ
“Even so, you must know that the Gold Jade Treasury is out of the question.”
The other party would endlessly deny the settlement statement I had presented.
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“Why is it out of the question? To be honest, Grand Strategist, did you not know that the task given to this delegation was impossible?”
“Yes. It was impossible, and in the end, it failed. An alliance with the Black Thought Alliance was not achieved.”
“You must not forget that the Black Thought Alliance gave us relics as tokens of friendship.”
“To begin with, those were items they could not handle carelessly. They used this opportunity to push off something that was more trouble than it was worth.”
Е̇ n̂ūmǎ.
“But now that those troublesome items are in your hands, Grand Strategist, do they not become more valuable than an equal weight of gold?”
However, once a high line was drawn, the negotiator would set that high line as the standard.
And at that moment, one had to pierce through the other party’s intent at once.
“To be honest, are you not also thinking of using those troublesome items to move the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Five Great Clans?”
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“…….”
Jegal So-myeong looked at me with a complicated gaze.
W̃_ėbn̈о̀ v̆ еl Е́ǹ um̀á
His eyes seemed to ask how on earth I knew that.
“It is obvious just from the fact that you have not yet announced that those items returned to the Murim Alliance.”
“Are you threatening me?”
One had to drive the other party where one wanted, but one must not wound their feelings.
I shook my head politely.
“Of course not. I merely seek proper compensation for the merit I established.”
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“That is something a martial artist who belongs to the murim world should naturally do.”
Then, one had to logically impress upon the other party the losses he might have suffered.
“That is true for ordinary matters, but such a great matter is different, is it not?”
“Different?”
“Yes. If an ordinary martial artist had been dispatched to the Black Thought Alliance, he would likely have either died there or fled back and informed the Murim Alliance of the incident. After that, a war between the Black Thought Alliance and the Murim Alliance would have been inevitable, and with the Blood Cult not yet properly dealt with, that war would certainly have inflicted serious and significant damage upon the Murim Alliance.”
Once the high line had been drawn, one had to continue defending it as long as possible.
E ṅ um а̌ .і̌d
Until the idea that such a large amount might perhaps be reasonable was engraved into the other party’s mind.
“If that had happened, countless warriors of the Murim Alliance would have died, and in the end, the Murim Alliance would have collapsed and vanished without a trace.”
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“Nonsense! Do you think such things happened only once or twice in the Murim Alliance’s five-hundred-year history?”
“Of course, I am speaking by way of example. Merely by way of example. In any case, if I, who established such great merit, do not receive proper compensation……”
If one then added justification, the board would tilt entirely to one’s side.
“Would other Alliance members try to grind their bones and crush their bodies for the Murim Alliance?”
Е_n u mа̀.
Jegal So-myeong hesitated briefly, then spoke.
“In any case, this mission of yours will not be made public.”
“Of course I know that. Even so, if proper compensation is not paid, all Alliance members will end up pursuing only their own benefit.”
“…….”
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And when it seemed that the impression that “perhaps the high line was not such an unreasonable amount” had been carved into the other party’s mind—
“…….”
Ẇ ёb̂_nо̂v е̇ l Еń ūm a
One must not press the other party any further, but wait leisurely.
Until the other party spoke first.
“……I will give you the Flying Dragon Robe in the Silver Jade Treasury. In addition, I will grant you the distribution rights for the Zhejiang Province branches.”
He has almost fallen for it.
I hid the corner of my mouth as it tried to rise.
The Flying Dragon Robe was an excellent item, useful for both offense and defense.
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But even if I obtained it right now, I had no immediate use for it.
That said, I could not reveal that honestly. Somehow, I had to use it as a tool to gain the upper hand over the other party.
I took one step back and made Jegal So-myeong feel as though he had received a concession.
“As I said earlier, our Great Heaven Merchant Guild, which is already cooperating with Wang Estate, will enter Zhejiang Province on its own anyway. In addition to that, please give us the distribution rights for Jiangsu Province as well. In exchange, I will receive an item from the Murim Treasury.”
“The Murim Treasury?”
“Yes. Among the items there, I will receive the Diamond Shield.”
W ёb̄n̂о̊ v̊ е_l Е nu ṁ а
Martial artists who had not experienced war did not know the usefulness of a shield.
Some even considered the very act of carrying a shield to be shameful.
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That was probably why a remarkable item like the Diamond Shield had been left abandoned in the Murim Treasury, one level below the Silver Jade Treasury.
At the sudden lowering of my demand, a wrinkle formed between Jegal So-myeong’s brows.
“A shield, you say?”
“Yes.”
Ẃ еbn̈о́ v_ӗ l̇ E.n̊ u̇m̊а
Since I had initially brought up the Gold Jade Treasury, it was only natural that he would find this strange.
“What do you plan to use a shield for?”
Right now, it was close to useless, but during wartime, the martial artist who possessed that Diamond Shield had survived the longest.
I deliberately spoke as though it were nothing special.
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“Is it not a solid lump of black iron? If I melt it down and make swords, how many blades would come out of it?”
“…….”
Ẇе̌bn о́ v е̌ ĺ En um а̌
I could feel Jegal So-myeong staring at me and turning the matter over in his head.
Inside that small head, he was surely weighing his own benefit against mine without cease.
If he thought he gained from it, he would accept. If he thought he suffered a loss, he would surely refuse while giving another reason.
Shall I drive in one more wedge here?
“If you dislike that, then as I said at first, I want the Blue Dragon Sword from the Gold Jade Treasury.”
I had heard that placing a stubborn obstruction in order to help the other party make up his mind was also an excellent negotiation technique for a creditor.
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“…….”
Sure enough, just as Hwang Gi-yeong had said, the debtor, thinking he had gained a benefit, nodded.
“Fine. I accept.”
“Thank you, my esteemed pushover.”
Ah, in my excitement, it slipped out without my realizing it……
“Pushover? What does that mean?”
Ӗn̂ ǔm̈ а́ . ĭ d̈
“Ah! I heard it refers to an excellent person with great magnanimity and firm resolve.”
“Is that so?”
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Jegal So-myeong nodded, seemingly rather pleased with the title.
Well, there was no way he would know a word used by back-alley loan sharks.
That took ten years off my life. Phew.
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