A Baby Cat Who Commands the Dog Clan - Chapter 144

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 144
“Remarkable!”
Nam Goong Ho exclaimed upon hearing Hu Gae’s words.
He had already forgotten his earlier irritation.
Thanks to Hu Gae, he was obtaining news of his target so effortlessly.
“So, where exactly is the secret manual inscribed with the Twelve Beast Martial Art right now? I trust someone of your caliber has already ascertained its location.”
At those words, Hu Gae creaked nervously.
“That’s… well, a problem has arisen.”
“A problem? What kind?”
“After days of arduous searching, I finally located the Treacherous Mountain Cave where Wu Hen Shen Tou last revealed himself… but…”
Hu Gae exhaled heavily.
“That place happened to be the nest of a Human-Faced Spider.”
A Human-Faced Spider—a spider bearing the visage of a human!
Everyone recoiled at the unexpected appearance of such a supernatural creature.
Hu Gae trembled as he recalled those horrifying moments.
“Human bones were scattered everywhere in that cave. The moment I discovered them, I turned to flee, but that’s when this caught my eye.”
Hu Gae glanced cautiously around before producing a short blade from his robes.
It was clearly an old, finely crafted blade forged from excellent steel.
With a soft whisper, Hu Gae partially drew the blade from its sheath.
Reflected in the firelight, a single line of inscription was etched upon the blade’s edge.
See what others cannot see.
It was an inscription befitting someone known for exceptional speed and wit.
Nam Goong Ho cried out.
“Could it be Wu Hen Shen Tou’s blade!”
“I thought the same and was examining the blade when suddenly I heard a piercing shriek, and my neck felt a burning sensation.”
It was the venom of the Human-Faced Spider.
Hu Gae’s body instantly paralyzed, and he found himself completely ensnared in webbing.
Wrapped layer upon layer from his feet to his head, he could scarcely breathe.
“But how did you manage to escape?”
“It seems I wasn’t the only one searching for the Twelve Beast Martial Art.”
“…!”
“The previous Valley Master of O Dok Valley, who had entered the Human-Faced Spider’s nest seeking the secret manual, rescued me.”
“What!”
Nam Goong Ho gasped in astonishment.
“I see. You received a great favor from the previous Valley Master.”
Tian Tong Gai also hummed softly, apparently unaware of this fact.
Hong Seol, whose brows had furrowed with concern as she listened to Hu Gae’s account, asked quietly.
“If you say ‘previous’… does that mean he has passed away?”
Hong Seol, whose eyebrows had furrowed into a worried expression somewhere during Hu Gae’s story, asked a question.
“If it’s the previous generation… Could they have passed away?”
“Yes, Miss. The previous Valley Master saved me when I was bound tight in spider webs, and then….”
Hu Gae’s voice wavered, and he bowed his head deeply. Nam Goong Ho spoke with a bitter smile.
“So that’s how you came to stay in O Dok Valley.”
“Yes. Since the previous Valley Master saved my life, I received rather favorable treatment.”
Hu Gae, who had been observing the outside situation, lowered his voice.
“The problem is that afterward, O Dok Valley began to reject the Central Plains.”
“What do you mean?”
“The Council of Elders, believing the previous Valley Master died because of me, insisted on severing ties with the Central Plains. They called it a curse, saying they should never have begun trade with Sichuan in the first place.”
Ah.
Nam Goong Ho nodded as if he finally understood the situation.
“So that’s why you led the charge against us so fiercely.”
A defector must always demonstrate their allegiance to their new side more clearly than anyone else.
Only then can they escape the suspicion and criticism of their own faction.
Hu Gae was undoubtedly the same.
His insistence on capturing Hong Seol’s group was a desperate survival tactic to solidify his position.
And in doing so, he had safely brought the group all the way to O Dok Valley.
Tian Tong Gai furrowed his brow and asked.
“Then who is the current ruler of O Dok Valley?”
“The previous Valley Master’s young successor became the Valley Master. His mother passed away long ago, and without strong backing, his position remains precarious even now.”
This was also another reason Hu Gae remained here.
To repay the debt he owed the previous Valley Master, he sought to solidify the current Valley Master’s position.
Tian Tong Gai, perceiving this sentiment, asked.
“How young exactly…?”
That was when it happened.
The adults in the Storage House suddenly startled in unison.
Tian Tong Gai hastily covered his mouth.
Then Hu Gae suddenly strode forward and without hesitation swung his palm.
Crack!
“How dare you talk back! I’m the one asking questions, not you!”
Tian Tong Gai, who had been slapped across the face by Hu Gae, widened his eyes in shock.
His white beard trembled visibly, a clear sign that his anger had reached its limit.
Yet the way he clenched his teeth and endured suggested he understood something.
Regardless of his reaction, Hu Gae paid no attention and turned to abruptly open the door.
“Please come in! I was just about to interrogate these Central Plains people.”
Standing before Hu Gae was a girl with broad shoulders and a dark complexion.
She couldn’t have been more than ten years old.
Behind her youthful figure stood roughly seven men with bearing as imposing as bears, each gripping spears.
One of them stepped forward and shouted loudly.
“Central Plains people, show proper respect!”
“It’s fine.”
When the girl raised her hand, the man took a step back.
I observed his reaction carefully.
‘Young, yet she carries herself with the composure of a seasoned adult.’
One could see it in the steely glint reflected in those round, brown eyes.
The child bowed lightly.
“I apologize for displaying such an unseemly spectacle before our honored guests. I am Maeng Woo Hee, the current Valley Master of O Dok Valley.”
* * *
First she had ordered our capture without hesitation, and now she called us guests.
Our party followed Maeng Woo Hee through the O Dok Valley Estate in a daze.
“During my absence, it seems the hot-blooded warriors of O Dok Valley attacked our guests.”
Regardless of whether the Valley Master was away, it was a serious matter for her subordinates to act so recklessly.
I watched the bear-like men clinging so closely to Maeng Woo Hee’s back that they nearly touched her.
‘The honor guard surrounding the Valley Master appears so loyal, yet something feels off.’
There were clearly complex circumstances hidden within.
‘She’s still so young….’
Yet she bore the weight of the Valley Master’s position alone.
I gazed at the back of Maeng Woo Hee’s head with sympathetic eyes.
“The recent passing of the previous Valley Master has left our warriors somewhat agitated. I humbly ask that you show them mercy and understanding.”
With those words, Maeng Woo Hee led our party to a Three-Story Pavilion, reserved for honored guests.
“Wow….”
I was too captivated by the sight of O Dok Valley’s halls to pay attention to anything else.
Though Sichuan’s landscapes were exotic enough to me, they paled in comparison to Nam Man.
Dragons and phoenixes adorned with gold leaf decorated the tiled roofs that crowned the densely stacked stone walls, and their craftsmanship was extraordinary.
The interior of the pavilion was equally magnificent.
The pillars were painted entirely in crimson, and inscriptions wishing for longevity carved throughout captured one’s gaze.
“My father carved those with his own hands.”
Maeng Woo Hee spoke, noticing my interest.
After seating our party around a round table, Maeng Woo Hee spoke quietly.
“I will speak plainly about what I need from you. I must capture and kill the Human-Faced Spider to avenge my father. However….”
She bit her lip firmly before continuing.
“With O Dok Valley’s current martial prowess, there is no way to kill the Human-Faced Spider.”
“Valley Master!”
“Please, do not speak such words!”
Urgent voices burst from the warriors standing behind her.
But when Maeng Woo Hee raised her hand, the voices ceased abruptly, as if all the warriors moved as one body.
That alone revealed how capable this young Valley Master truly was.
She spoke slowly and deliberately.
“My father, the previous Valley Master, perfected O Dok Valley’s martial arts. Yet in the end, he fell to the Human-Faced Spider. How then could I, far inferior to my father, possibly stand against such a creature?”
A moment of silence fell.
It was a silence born of sympathy for Maeng Woo Hee, who had lost her father at such a tender age and now carried such a heavy burden.
Yet Maeng Woo Hee gazed only toward the future, her voice betraying not a tremor of emotion.
“Might I ask—are you both not renowned warriors of the Central Plains?”
Maeng Woo Hee spoke these words while observing Nam Goong Ho and Tian Tong Gai.
No matter her youth, the Valley Master was indeed different.
“…A young Valley Master gilding the face of an old man with flattery. Yet it seems you possess discerning eyes for people.”
At Nam Goong Ho’s words, Maeng Woo Hee offered a rare smile.
“Thank you for the praise. And I have one more question to ask. You two are acquainted with that person, are you not?”
Maeng Woo Hee’s gesture pointed toward Hu Gae, who was dressed in Nam Man attire.
“Well, that is….”
Tian Tong Gai, whose cheek still bore a vivid flush, glared at Hu Gae with evident displeasure.
His demeanor suggested bewilderment at why he had even bothered with such an act if it was going to be exposed like this.
‘Successor or not, perhaps I should just swap him out entirely….’
“Ahem!”
As if sensing Tian Tong Gai’s thoughts, Hu Gae let out a deliberate cough and feigned indifference.
Nam Goong Ho and Tian Tong Gai revealed their identities to Maeng Woo Hee.
Even the fact that they had come seeking the secret techniques of the Southern Barbarian Beast Palace.
At this, Maeng Woo Hee’s eyes gleamed brilliantly. Yet she soon concealed her expression and spoke again.
“Since you say you know each other, you must have also heard that my father rescued that person and departed this world.”
Tian Tong Gai nodded gravely, somehow sensing what words would next emerge from Maeng Woo Hee’s lips.
As expected, she voiced the very words he had anticipated.
“I beseech you. If there exists such a thing as a debt of gratitude in the Jianghu that you speak of, please grant me the strength to avenge myself against the Human-Faced Spider.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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