Abolition of the Wicked - Chapter 78

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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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#078

There would be only one chance.
‘If I’d known, I should have kept one needle from the Hidden Needle Armor.’
He quickly shed the regret for what was already gone.
Now he had to win with what he possessed and protect what he held. He had to strike a mortal blow with a single move.
A half-hearted wound would not suffice.
‘The chest or the throat.’
Sang Nam-jae chose to aim for the chest.
Even a horizontal sweep of the blade felt beyond his strength now.
He threw his entire body forward, driving his sword into Naeng Seo-mok’s chest. It was the simplest, fastest move—the only attack he could manage.
He needed to sync his breathing with Naeng Seo-mok’s pace, but his ragged gasps would not settle.
“Indeed, you were always the most useful of the dogs I’ve raised. Even now, that glint in your eye hasn’t died. Are you preparing one last blow?”
‘Two steps.’
“Do you know why fishing in a torrential gorge is more entertaining than casting a line on a still lake?”
‘One step.’
“Because there’s the thrill of something thrashing on the hook.”
The moment Naeng Seo-mok finished speaking, Sang Nam-jae drove off the ground.
It was the fastest speed he could muster now, and even if his body had been whole, he could not have moved faster.
Clang!
The ring of steel should not have sounded.
His hand should not have felt so empty.
Sang Nam-jae was fast, but Naeng Seo-mok was far faster—and far stronger.
His trembling hand could not withstand the force of Naeng Seo-mok’s parry; the blade slipped from his grip.
Suddenly, breath would not come.
Naeng Seo-mok did not end Sang Nam-jae’s life at once.
Thin as bamboo root but hard as iron, Naeng Seo-mok’s fingers clamped around his throat.
“Easy as a fish in still water. To think someone like you would rob me of a lifetime’s achievement.”
He felt the cold blade touch his lower belly.
“I’ll slice you open slowly, from here upward. Your bowels will spill, yet you’ll live long enough to suffer. Contemplate your death, your foolish end for the sake of a mere woman…….”
As the blade began to bite into his abdomen, Sang Nam-jae saw something flash once more.
A needle appeared like a phantom, embedding itself in Naeng Seo-mok’s head as he wore that faint smile, and then a blade swept past, licking the skull clean.
The torso, flung leftward, vanished into the darkness and could not even be seen, while the head that had left it shattered into fragments.
He had steeled himself to feel his belly split open, to see his own entrails and know agony—instead, before him lay the body of Naeng Seo-mok, not even intact enough to call a corpse.
“You fools! If you were coming, you should have come sooner!”
“And you—why did you drag this out and make me step in!”
“I swear, nothing gets done unless I do it myself!”
“Argh!”
The figures that materialized before Sang Nam-jae were the Bloodwind Four Lions.
They hurled recriminations at one another before their gazes turned toward the space behind Sang Nam-jae.
Sang Nam-jae turned to follow their eyes and saw Gang Seo Samak standing unsteadily.
‘What in the world just happened?’
Into that confusion came Do Pyeong-su’s voice.
“Did you intend to rescue this one by moving at such a snail’s pace?”
“We struck at the critical moment, perfectly timed. We were startled when the Masters appeared and froze.”
“Is that so? And this place where you froze in shock—is it Gangxi Province?”
It was a thousand li away from Gangxi Province. O Tong-su hesitated in his response.
“I think we said it was Jiangsu Province, not Gangxi…….”
“It’s not even Jiangsu Province! These brats are getting too big for their britches, ignoring the Master’s word now! I clearly told you not to help that blade-bearer!”
“But the Masters came too.”
“We had no choice! The child was making such a fuss!”
The single word—”child”—struck the back of Sang Nam-jae’s head like a thunderbolt.
“Has my wife given birth?”
Yeon Geum-hong answered in a measured voice.
“A daughter. Both child and mother are in good health.”
His legs did not simply give way beneath him—he knelt not from weakness, but in gratitude to a god whose existence he had never dared to believe in until that moment.
Jang Man-dok arrived and swept Sang Nam-jae into his arms, laying him out in the Main Hall before beginning treatment.
They had anticipated Sang Nam-jae’s injuries from the moment they departed Oseong Jang-won. That was why Wound Healing Medicine, bandages, and even needles for suturing were all prepared.
In the end, administering the medicine to hasten the wound’s healing took no more than a quarter hour.
As Jang Man-dok patted Sang Nam-jae’s shoulder, Do Pyeong-su spoke.
“Don’t worry yourself. If Man-dok treated him, it would be strange if anything went wrong. Count yourself fortunate.”
“That’s true. I really do seem to be a lucky man. Truly…….”
Any more words and tears would spill out uncontrollably.
“But Master.”
“What?”
“You said the reason you saved Nam-jae was because he was too noisy, didn’t you?”
“And?”
“Is that a valid reason?”
“The child makes noise because his father’s gone. Noise disrupts my senior brother’s cultivation practice, disturbs the estate’s peace, and causes all manner of troubles. So I had no choice but to go retrieve him.”
“I see! That’s exactly how we are too! Ha ha ha!”
O Tong-su’s laughter earned him a sharp rap to the head, yet his spirits remained high enough that a smile never left his face.
“How can my disciples be so soft-hearted? Isn’t it remarkable?”
At Do Pyeong-su’s words, Yeon Geum-hong’s lips curved in amusement.
“They’re our disciples, but they’re also your senior brother’s temperament, after all.”
“True enough. I dislike being where blood scents linger, so tonight I’ll simply have to endure the night dew.”
Just as they stepped out from Seobaek Salmun and were about to deploy their Lightness Technique to descend the mountain, they spotted something.
Someone was cutting through the darkness, ascending rapidly toward them.
“Did some of them survive?”
Judging by the lightness technique, this person possessed considerable martial skill. But the figure revealed beneath the moonlight was far too familiar.
“Isn’t that Gong Seong-tak?”
“It is.”
Gong Seong-tak, who had been climbing the mountain path at speed, slowed upon spotting them.
“Oh? My lords, what brings you here? The overseers are present as well.”
Seo Seok-san asked.
“And what brings you here, Gong Seong-tak?”
There would be no reason for Gong Seong-tak to be here unless it was to rescue Sang Nam-jae. Yet he was considerably late.
“You’ve already saved him, I see. I’m afraid I’ve arrived rather late. Ha ha ha!”
“Rather late? Tsk, tsk, tsk……. You should devote yourself more earnestly to Lightness Technique instead of sword forms. My disciples were already here and waiting.”
“It’s not that my Lightness Technique is slow!”
“Then?”
“I happened to stop at another location along the way…….”
“Another location?”
“I took the wrong route to Seobaek Geommun instead of Seobaek Salmun, and I had to detour there, which is why I’m late. Who would have thought there’d be two such similar sects nearby?”
Gong Seong-tak, with virtually no experience in the Jianghu, could certainly have done such a thing, and they afforded him the maximum benefit of understanding.
Then, as if recalling something, Go Seo-bang asked.
“You went to the wrong place and ended up at Seobaek Geommun? What became of that sect?”
Gong Seong-tak’s body went rigid.
He trembled visibly and turned away.
“I, I have a long road ahead. We should hurry.”
“That’s exactly why I’m asking—what happened to Seobaek Geommun?”
Gong Seong-tak’s Lightness Technique was swift. He was certainly not the sort to arrive late.

***

They arrived at Oseong Jang-won when the midday sun hung full in the sky.
Waiting at the Main Gate of Oseong Jang-won were Geom U-bin, Go Shin-ji, and Se-hwa.
Go Shin-ji rushed toward Sang Nam-jae, who stood among the nine of them.
She had trusted Geom U-bin’s promise that he would return safely. Yet tears of relief poured forth without restraint.
Se-hwa held out the infant she carried toward Sang Nam-jae, who was patting Go Shin-ji’s back.
The child, with fair skin and delicate, finely-formed features, was breathing softly in sleep.
Sang Nam-jae, receiving the infant, found himself at a loss.
Simply holding the child proved harder than walking a tightrope.
At his clumsiness, the child stirred awake and began to cry. O Tong-su then remarked.
“Having a father here only makes the child cry more? Was saving him pointless?”
“Perhaps we should go back and leave him there?”
They burst into laughter and stepped through the gates into Oseong Jang-won.

It was a warm noon on an autumn day.

***

“Nonsense! My blade was the first to sever the head of the Master of Seobaek Salmun! So my name absolutely must be included! Of course I take Father’s surname, so Sang for the surname, then Shin from Mother’s name, and Su from my name!”
As Do Pyeong-su raised his voice, the other three made faces of disbelief.
“So you want to name the girl Shin-su? Is she some mystical creature like a dragon or phoenix? Sang Shin-su? It would be better to attach my final character—Sang Shin-san.”
At Seo Seok-san’s words, Yeon Geum-hong let out a derisive snort.
“A spirit-possessed mountain? Are you planning to make her a shaman later? Since it’s a girl’s name, naturally it should follow a girl’s name. Any girl’s name with the character Hong in it turns out pretty.”
Seo Seok-san rolled the name around in his mouth before speaking.
“You try calling it. Sang Shin-hong. Sang Shin-hong. From the second time my tongue tangles, and from the third time my nose clogs up.”
“Even if it’s hard to say, the meaning is all that matters!”
When Jang Man-dok rapped the table, the pavilion shook entirely.
Jang Man-dok wrote his will large across the table with his finger—Sang Shin-dok.
Do Pyeong-su let out a long sigh.
“Man-dok. Even you can’t think a girl’s name should be Shin-dok, can you? Are yours good names? My name is at least better than Shin-dok, Shin-san, or Shin-hong.”
“Nonsense! The child’s name is definitely Shin-hong!”
“Shin-san is the best!”
All four sprang to their feet, and as their opinions clashed, a collision of Martial Force inevitably followed.
It was only that Sang Nam-jae and his wife appeared with the infant—a moment later and the pavilion’s roof would have caved in.
“Ah! Here comes our Nam-jae and his wife. Come sit here, here.”
Do Pyeong-su guided them to their seats with careful politeness, and Yeon Geum-hong poured tea for them both.
“This is from a dear junior—the taste is absolutely exquisite.”
The Bloodwind Four Lions’ excessive kindness left the unfamiliar couple looking bewildered as they settled into their seats.
“My, what a lovely thing! Takes after Mother and Father—truly a beauty, a real beauty!”
At Seo Seok-san’s praise, Jang Man-dok withdrew something from his arms and handed it to Sang Nam-jae.
In his thick palm lay a single root of ginseng.
“Let her drink it boiled. It’s been aged appropriately for postpartum recovery, or so this dishonorable fellow claims.”
As Sang Nam-jae and his wife thanked them repeatedly, Yeon Geum-hong asked:
“So, have you decided on the child’s name? We have one good name and three terrible ones to offer you.”
The three men glared, but Yeon Geum-hong’s warm smile toward the couple never faded.
“Actually, we came to discuss the child’s name with you.”
At Go Shin-ji’s words, the Bloodwind Four Lions leaned in eagerly.
“Discuss whatever you like. I’ll provide the best answer.”
At Seo Seok-san’s bold claim, the other three began muttering that he couldn’t be trusted, that a scatterbrained ladies’ man’s words weren’t worth hearing, and the atmosphere grew tense again.
Fortunately, the child woke, and the angry atmosphere dissipated with remarkable speed.
Sang Nam-jae spoke.
“We’d like to use one character from the Lord’s name in the child’s name, if you would permit it.”
For a moment, the Bloodwind Four Lions were speechless.
Not anyone else, but to take a character from Geom U-bin’s name—there was no way to object to that.
Still, with a lingering reluctance, Do Pyeong-su ventured to ask:
“Would there be any thought of adding perhaps one more name? There are quite a few people with three-character names.”
“Pardon?”
Seo Seok-san quickly canceled Do Pyeong-su’s suggestion.
“Never mind. The elder brother would approve. So, what name were you thinking of?”
“The first character of the Lord’s name and the last character of my wife’s name.”
“Sang U-ji?”
The Bloodwind Four Lions tilted his head.
“For some reason it sounds like some bovine something, which seems odd.”
“No, not U-ji, but Ji-u—Sang Ji-u, we plan to call her.”
“Ah! Ji-u! That’s lovely. It rolls right off the tongue.”
“The Lord isn’t here, so we haven’t been able to ask.”
“He’s in Cultivation Practice. He should emerge in about one Double Hour. Ask him then.”
As Sang Nam-jae and his wife took their leave with words of gratitude, the Bloodwind Four Lions, who had been regarding each other with awkward expressions, let out a quiet laugh.
“If they said our names go into the child’s name, we should absolutely talk them out of it. Right?”
“If that couple tried to include the names of everyone who helped them, the child’s name would be ten characters long.”
“By the time they finished calling out all those characters to fish someone out of the water, she’d drown. Heehee!”
As the Bloodwind Four Lions exchanged banter, the sound of a baby crying echoed in the distance.

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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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