Tales Of The Nine Dragons [EN]: Chapter 196

Traces of the Defector

As soon as Ilcheon Gungma woke up, he started a fight with Hwa-rin, who beat him up again until he passed out.

After repeating this a few times, Ilcheon Gungma became as docile as a sheep to Hwa-rin, completely subdued.

“If you rush in recklessly, you’ll be affected by the sorcery. Well, you’re quite strong, so you might withstand it. But those you brought with you will all be affected.”

“Hmph!”

Ilcheon Gungma snorted, and Hwa-rin raised his hand, causing Ilcheon Gungma to flinch and cower. Seeing this, Hwa-rin chuckled and took out a talisman from his pocket, handing it over.

“Take it.”

“What is this?”

“If you burn the talisman with your internal energy [qi or life force], it will guide you to where they are.”

Ilcheon Gungma looked at Hwa-rin.

“I don’t know much, but you fought against the defectors thirty years ago, so you should know. Of course, things are different now than they were then, but the fact that they’ve revealed themselves in the Murim world [martial arts world] after thirty years means they’re confident.”

Ilcheon Gungma nodded after receiving the talisman.

“So, don’t sacrifice your subordinates needlessly. Use your brain to deal with them, or just take the corpses back to the Demonic Cult. That’s what you should do.”

Seeing Ilcheon Gungma completely under Hwa-rin’s control, the young masters of the Twelve Great Families looked at Hwa-rin with admiration.

‘Ilcheon Gungma is a Demon King ranked within the top ten of the Demonic Cult. To possess the power to tame such a person like a dog means he has martial prowess comparable to at least the Three Kings and Four Sages. Now I understand why Father told me to cultivate a friendship with Hwa-rin Jangju [leader].’

The young masters of the Twelve Great Families had the same thought. To them, the existence of Hwa-rin was deeply imprinted in their minds.

“If you understand, take the corpses and leave.”

Ilcheon Gungma looked at Hwa-rin.

“Why? Do you have more to say?”

“No, I don’t. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to avenge my subordinates. And I won’t forget the humiliation I suffered today.”

“That’s your problem. Just go. Don’t even think about harming innocent children.”

Ilcheon Gungma nodded to his subordinates, who loaded the coffins containing the corpses onto carts.

“Let’s go.”

As Ilcheon Gungma and his subordinates left, the tension that had lingered in the detached building of the inn disappeared.

“Hyung-nim [older brother], Ilcheon Gungma won’t attack us from afar, will he?”

“Don’t worry about that. He’ll only come looking for us after we’ve left this place.”

Hwa-rin spoke nonchalantly, and Baek Gun-seong asked what he was curious about.

“But you, you were also learning sorcery?”

“What did you hear? I told you that when I was in the military, I experienced various sorceries from the Esoteric Buddhism, Soneum Temple, and the Western Regions. Did you think I only experienced them?”

Everyone looked at Hwa-rin.

“To survive, you have to learn everything that can be helpful.”

“Isn’t it said that being proficient in one skill is better than having ten thousand skills?”

“Yes. But change your thinking a bit. After learning ten thousand skills, you can become a master by mastering the one that suits you, right?”

Everyone couldn’t find a rebuttal to Hwa-rin’s words.

“Without even knowing your aptitude, can you guarantee success just by learning the one thing they teach you?”

‘Always with the words…….’

“There’s no one in the world without talent. It’s just a matter of whether what I’m doing or learning suits me or not.”

The young masters were trying to remember Hwa-rin’s teachings, muttering and trying to memorize them.

“So, during the Hugiji period [a period of intense training or learning], learn a lot. If you then master what suits you, you’ll achieve faster progress.”

“Did you learn that way, Hyung-nim?”

“I learned everything I could in the military. And as I mastered martial arts and overcame a wall, I began to understand even the things that didn’t suit me.”

“Ah…….”

“As I overcame another wall like that, I could easily use what I knew beyond just understanding it.”

“Is it similar to Manyugwijong [a concept of returning to the origin after mastering many skills]?”

“I’m not sure about that. Rather than Manyugwijong, the metaphor that extremes meet seems more accurate. Once I mastered one thing, I naturally understood the principles of other things easily and could learn them quickly.”

Baek Gun-seong looked at the young masters while listening to Hwa-rin’s words, and their eyes were different from the beginning, completely absorbed.

‘The moment a new religious leader is born.’

* * *

After finishing their work in Hoju, Hwa-rin and Baek Gun-seong’s group headed to Seochang to report to the Blood Oath Alliance’s branch.

Seochang is located on the main road connecting Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, and it is a developed city known as the second capital of Sichuan province, where many people live and make a living.

Arriving at the Blood Oath Alliance’s branch in Seochang, they planned to stay there for a day before moving on to Yunnan province.

“Why?”

Baek Gun-seong was annoyed with Hwa-rin.

“Think about it. How many evil sects have I destroyed? How can I sleep here with my feet stretched out? There must be martial artists from the sects I annihilated at the branch, right?”

“That’s true, but do you think they would dare to draw a sword against you?”

“You never know with people. So don’t guarantee anything. Anyway, I’m going to sleep at an inn, not here. Hyuk-jin, let’s go to an inn.”

Seeing Hwa-rin leaving the Blood Oath Alliance’s branch with Danri Hyuk-jin, Baek Gun-seong couldn’t help but sigh.

“There’s no master like that master.”

Leaving the Blood Oath Alliance’s branch, Hwa-rin looked around for an inn and went to a place called Seoan Inn.

“An inn named after a region means it’s been around for a long time, and the fact that it’s still in business means they have their own rules or philosophy, or maybe the food is delicious.”

Danri Hyuk-jin listened carefully to Hwa-rin’s words.

“You’ve run an inn, so you know that the taste of an inn is usually similar unless it’s exceptional. But there are places that do well and places that don’t. What’s the reason for that?”

“Isn’t it because the philosophy or rules of the manager appeal to the guests?”

“Yes. Our Guryong Inn is trying to maintain a similar taste no matter where you go in the Central Plains. This is also a reflection of the manager’s philosophy or rules.”

“That’s why people say that the food is always neat and delicious wherever you go to a Guryong Inn in Seoseong.”

“That’s true now, but the situation will change later when there are many more branches in the Central Plains. There’s no one who can just stand by and watch when they see money.”

Danri Hyuk-jin didn’t know what Hwa-rin was trying to say with this story, but he silently listened to Hwa-rin’s words, believing that it would be of great help to him.

“Hyuk-jin, can you give up greed?”

“Well, I don’t think I can. But Nui is a person without greed, so she’s different from me.”

“I know that better than anyone. Soso only looks at you. She’s satisfied as long as you live a long and healthy life.”

Danri Hyuk-jin lowered his head.

“But don’t blame yourself for the actions of the past. Remember it until you die and promise yourself that you won’t do it again.”

“I will keep that in mind, Hyung-nim.”

“After visiting Daeri Sega [Daeri Family] this time, Hyuk-jin, I want you to take over the entire operation of Guryong Inn.”

Danri Hyuk-jin’s eyes widened at Hwa-rin’s words.

“The entire inn, you mean?”

“Except for Guryongru [Guryong Tower], just the inn. I’ll let you take care of the Giru [entertainment district] depending on how you do. For now, just take charge of running the inn.”

“I will work hard, Hyung-nim.”

He didn’t say he didn’t want to, so I felt good that he showed a willingness to do something.

“Since you’re running many inns, create your own management philosophy that I mentioned earlier. When you go to Daeri Sega, find out what they were thinking when they accumulated so much wealth.”

“I will do that. But Hyung-nim.”

“Why?”

“Why are you so good to us siblings?”

“Do you not like being treated well?”

“No, it’s not that. But if I knew the reason, many questions would be resolved.”

Hwa-rin thought for a moment and then opened his mouth.

“It was fate. The beginning of that small connection bound me and you siblings together. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“Ah, I thought Hyung-nim had Nui in mind and was being good to us because of her.”

“Really?”

“But you have Namgung Suyeon by your side, so I didn’t think you were being good to us because of Nui, so I asked.”

Hwa-rin looked up at the sky.

-Just as the principle of meeting is to come by fate and part by fate, our meeting like this is also fate. So hold on tight to this bond of fate and endure. If someone else approaches you and grabs the bond of fate while you are enduring, guide him well.

These were the words he heard from Danri Hyuk-gwang when Hwa-rin first met him.

‘Being with this guy will make me think of Hyung a lot. I’ll make this guy a person so that Hyung doesn’t have to worry.’

A faint smile appeared on Hwa-rin’s lips.

“Let’s go eat and sleep.”

* * *

“I heard about your brother. I’m really sorry.”

Hwa-jeong-su was meeting with smugglers from Haedong [a region, often referring to Korea or the East Sea] to make a deal.

Since the plan to supply grain to the Heungchin Royal Guard had gone awry, he planned to raise funds first, repay the borrowed money, retrieve the mortgaged fields, and then reorganize the grain distribution.

“I’ve known for a long time that things don’t always go as planned. But I don’t have the luxury to mourn my brother’s death, so it just hurts.”

“I understand that feeling well. So I looked into the person who reported the smuggling location, hoping it would be helpful.”

“So did you find out?”

“I heard that the person who was with the Palosuro army that day was Guryong Jangju.”

A fierce light flashed in Hwa-jeong-su’s eyes.

“Are you sure it was him?”

“Yes. So I looked into Guryong Jangju, hoping it would be helpful, and if you have a bad relationship with him, it would be good to resolve it as soon as possible.”

“What do you mean by resolving the bad relationship?”

“His surname is Ju. In the Central Plains, only the imperial family, royal family, and Seong clan can use the surname Ju.”

The surname Ju is a precious surname in the Central Plains, but in the Central Plains, where the father’s surname is inherited, quite a few people used the surname Ju.

This was also the result of the Ju clan spreading their seeds for the sake of racial reproduction while ruling the Central Plains for hundreds of years.

Hwa-jeong-su had seen Hwa-rin occasionally in the same place as the princes and princesses in the Heungchin Royal Palace, but he never thought that he was a true member of the royal family or Seong clan.

“Those who have fallen due to rebellion or treason also use the surname Ju.”

“Those people would have all lived miserably and died. Even if there were survivors, they would hide the surname Ju and live. But Ju Hwa-rin opened a manor called Guryong Jang and nothing happened until he succeeded in business. This is clearly one of the true-blooded members of the imperial family, royal family, or Seong clan.”

“Hmm…….”

“You may not know about other places, but it won’t be easy to deal with him in the Central Plains. And according to information from the Haedong Kingdom’s royal family, the current emperor of the Central Plains has nine sons, and only eight sons live in the imperial palace.”

“So you’re saying that Guryong Jangju is the emperor’s son?”

Hwa-jeong-su was annoyed.

“That’s what I’m saying. You need to know what difficult situation your client is in.”

“So you’re saying you won’t do business with us?”

“I’m sorry. We can’t help it because we could be in danger too. Smuggling is originally like that. Reducing the risk in any way possible!”

Hwa-jeong-su couldn’t refute the words of the smuggler from Haedong.

“Apologize to Guryong Jangju and resolve the matter amicably with him, or kill him and leave no trace so that the body cannot be found. Contact us again when the relationship between Hwamyeong Merchant Group and Guryong Jang is resolved amicably in one of these two ways.”

‘Damn it.’

“I came here today to talk about that, so let’s see each other again after Hwamyeong Merchant Group has sorted everything out.”

The smuggler from Haedong finished what he had to say and turned around without regret.

“The goods…….”

“Let’s see them next time.”