Chronicles of the Mad Demon - Chapter 197

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 197. Continuing Chains (5)

“Here it is.”

“I see.”

“I’ll go in first.”

Wun Kyung opened the door and entered, looking around.

The quiet inn had no guests. No shop boy was visible either, and only the presence of what seemed to be a cook could be sensed in the kitchen.

And far away by the window, a man was sitting.

Wun Kyung silently bowed his head.

The man, Sama Jin Gung, rose from his seat and spoke.

“Tell him to come in.”

“Yes.”

Wun Kyung, who was about to go back out, looked toward the kitchen once more.

‘A strong one.’

Though the presence seemed ordinary, Wun Kyung, who had learned the divine arts of Mu Dang, could tell that the person presumed to be the cook possessed considerable martial arts.

He didn’t think he would lose, but it wouldn’t be an easy victory either.

Wun Kyung approached the door.

“Jang Moon In.”

“Yes.”

Jo Geom Jin In entered with his hands clasped behind his back.

Sama Jin Gung’s eyes deepened.

‘So this is Jo Geom, the Mu Dang Jang Moon In.’

He had seen him once before, but this was the first time they faced each other alone like this.

Jo Geom Jin In walked toward Sama Jin Gung without hesitation, as if entering his own private quarters.

“Though a bit shabby, it’s a well-maintained place. Is this one of the secret inns operated by Ho Buk Ji Dan?”

He started with light psychological warfare from the beginning.

Sama Jin Gung didn’t bother to hide it.

“That’s correct.”

“This is the first time we’re meeting like this, just the two of us?”

“Indeed it is.”

“Well, even though I’m the Jang Moon In of the great Mu Dang Faction, there’s no separate greeting.”

“Do you desire one?”

Jo Geom Jin In, who had been quietly observing Sama Jin Gung, soon smiled.

“As long as there’s minimal courtesy, that’s enough. It’s not like we met on good terms.”

“Please, have a seat.”

“Very well.”

As the two men sat down, the cook brought out two cups of tea as if he had been waiting.

Jo Geom Jin In glanced at the cook and chuckled.

“How long do you plan to keep up this ghost act?”

The cook, Sama Hyeon, spoke calmly.

“Do you know me?”

“I didn’t know, but the aura you’re hiding is that of Sama Se Ga. Looking at you, you bear quite a resemblance to the Alliance Leader here. Are you family?”

“That’s correct.”

Sama Hyeon wasn’t flustered in the slightest.

When Jo Geom Jin In nodded silently, Wun Kyung took out a silver needle from his chest and dipped it into the tea.

It was a process to check for poison. Though it wasn’t proper behavior to do in front of the other party, neither Jo Geom Jin In nor the Sima men minded.

After a moment, Wun Kyung withdrew the silver needle.

“It’s safe.”

Sama Jin Gung spoke up.

“With Jang Moon In’s martial arts, any poison would be useless anyway.”

Yet the fact that they deliberately checked for poison with a silver needle meant they had no intention of continuing the conversation peacefully.

“I’m grateful that you hold Mu Dang’s martial arts in high regard, but I’m not ignorant of how vast the world is. There are many poisons in the world, and even the Ten Great Masters aren’t completely immune to poison.”

“If we had poison of that caliber, we wouldn’t waste it on Jang Moon In.”

Wun Kyung’s eyebrows twitched.

Jo Geom Jin In burst into hearty laughter.

“Right, you shouldn’t waste such precious poison on someone like me.”

“Exactly.”

“Isn’t it true that each and every thought like that accumulates to create carelessness? Don’t take it too personally.”

He’s definitely not ordinary, Sama Jin Gung thought.

“And speaking truthfully, to you, I’m not exactly an easy opponent, am I?”

“Of course not.”

“I’m not saying this to stroke my own ego. You’re clearly trying to capture Mu Dang’s leadership. To you, I’m a formidable enemy in some sense, no less than the Ten Great Masters, aren’t I?”

“Why do you think that?”

“Are you testing me?”

“I’m curious how much you know.”

“You’ll make for interesting conversation.”

“I hope so.”

Jo Geom Jin In tilted his head sideways.

“You want to drive out Mu Dang’s leadership, including me, don’t you?”

“That’s correct.”

Since he readily admitted this as well, Jo Geom Jin In had no grounds for sarcasm.

“Yes, you want to expel Mu Dang’s leadership. Though you haven’t said it directly, Mu Dang’s intelligence network is far more impressive than you think.”

“Information alone makes it difficult to know for certain.”

“In the process of analyzing and compiling information, various possibilities can be discerned.”

Sama Jin Gung’s eyes deepened.

Though he had thought from the beginning that this was no ordinary person, he was indeed a difficult opponent.

Jo Geom Jin In himself was an outstanding individual. Even if he wasn’t quite a military strategist or tactician, his martial arts alone were sufficient for a leader of the Nine Great Sects, and especially the intelligence network he controlled and wielded was a tremendous threat.

Even if individual ability is lacking, organizational power can turn that individual into an unimaginably powerful monster.

In that regard, for Jo Geom Jin In, who already had outstanding individual abilities, Mu Dang Faction’s military might and intelligence network were like wings on a tiger’s back.

“It seems Ho Yeon Clan has been pressuring the Sima quite severely lately.”

“When has it ever been otherwise?”

“That means the Sima have been preparing to oppose Ho Yeon Clan since ancient times.”

“Naturally.”

“But why aren’t you trying to face Ho Yeon Clan, and instead trying to drive out Mu Dang’s leadership?”

A faint smile appeared on Sama Jin Gung’s face.

“If you have a suspicion, there’s no need to test me, is there?”

“I’m not certain. Surely Sama Se Ga wouldn’t abandon the territory they’ve occupied for so long?”

“….”

“So I was right after all.”

He already knew everything.

Though he had taken a hit, Sama Jin Gung wasn’t flustered in the slightest.

“No matter how impressive Mu Dang’s intelligence network is, reading that far wouldn’t be easy.”

“Mu Dang’s power extends throughout the realm. The strength we’ve gathered over the past twenty years is by no means trivial, as you well know?”

“It can only be the hunter who knows the prey well. If that’s the analogy you’re making, then yes, you’re right.”

“Prey… You really speak quite openly.”

“It was Jang Moon In who wanted that.”

The smile gradually disappeared from Jo Geom Jin In’s face.

With just a slight change in expression, the air inside the inn grew heavy.

“The position of Alliance Leader of Ho Buk Ji Dan is not something anyone can ignore. Moreover, if someone who hasn’t even reached forty has seized that position, this represents extraordinary skill.”

“Thank you for the compliment.”

“That’s exactly why we’ve been watching you.”

“We’re in similar positions then.”

Sama Jin Gung’s counterattack began.

Jo Geom Jin In looked at him with suspicion.

“What do you mean?”

“Didn’t I say? It takes a hunter to know the prey well.”

“It’s quite an unpleasant comparison, but let’s say that’s true. So?”

“I believe that no matter how excellent Mu Dang Faction’s intelligence network is, it’s not enough to penetrate affairs in the distant north.”

Jo Geom Jin In’s lips twitched.

“Why do you think that?”

“You’d have difficulty fully grasping even the information from Henan, which borders Hubei directly. After all, Shaolin is there.”

“Shaolin is always frightening.”

“Furthermore, it’s hard to know about regions northeast of Shaolin. You’d have to cover both Shanxi and Liaodong.”

“There’s no Shaolin there.”

“But there are the Ho Yeon Clan and the Hebei Peng Family.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“I’m curious when you began your friendship with the Ho Yeon Clan.”

Jo Geom Jin In chuckled.

“Back when they were called the Seven Great Families, we would have tried to establish connections with the Sima clan as well.”

It meant it was natural for the privileged class to form deep relationships with each other.

“Then why didn’t you form relationships with Shaolin? I don’t understand why the two factions called ‘Northern Reverence, Southern Respect’ are checking each other.”

“Are you really a Sima? If you understood complex political dynamics, you couldn’t say such things.”

“There’s no need to discuss dynamics. The answer is simple.”

Sama Jin Gung gazed steadily into Jo Geom Jin In’s eyes.

“It’s because Mu Dang Faction is not what it used to be.”

“You speak dangerously well.”

“The person who knows best that it’s hard to call them the same, even as empty words, is the sect leader, isn’t it?”

“….”

“When the Ho Yeon Clan first drove out the Moyong Clan and took their place, Shaolin and Mu Dang showed the least support. Shaolin took the position of ‘let’s wait and see since the evidence is so clear,’ while Mu Dang Faction even helped relocate the Moyong clan to Hubei.”

Jo Geom Jin In’s eyes sharpened.

Sama Jin Gung continued.

“When Shaolin later learned that they intended to completely eliminate the Moyong bloodline, they actively tried to prevent it. Mu Dang was the same. Shaolin and Mu Dang were such factions.”

“Be careful with your future words….”

“However, Mu Dang wanted something from the Moyong clan. When Shaolin realized this belatedly once again, they pressured Mu Dang. Isn’t that right?”

“….”

“I understand Shaolin had many problems scattered throughout as well. Even so, they tried to prevent unjust and terrible things, but Mu Dang could not do the same.”

Sama Jin Gung smiled.

It was an expression that didn’t suit him well, but that made it feel even more dangerous.

“Would Shaolin not know about the deep relationships between those currently leading Mu Dang, the Ho Yeon Clan, and the Hebei Peng Family?”

“Don’t tell me you… joined hands with Shaolin?”

“We are an orthodox faction. There’s nothing to discuss about joining hands between those who pursue righteousness. We’re different from Mu Dang Faction.”

Whoosh.

The weightless air seemed to gain mass as the pressure inside the inn increased.

The energy wave flowing subtly from Jo Geom Jin In was truly terrifying. Even though he wasn’t deliberately spreading it, the furniture in the inn seemed unable to withstand it.

Sama Jin Gung didn’t blink an eye.

“How about withdrawing even now?”

“How dare you interfere in another faction’s internal affairs?”

“It’s merely a suggestion. It’s better than meeting a more miserable end.”

“Who would dare touch us? Even that Shaolin couldn’t do such a thing.”

“There are many forces in the world more frightening than Shaolin.”

“What?”

“All the factions with righteous thoughts and wisdom.”

“…!”

“What do you think will happen when it becomes known that Mu Dang Faction joined hands with Ma In?”

Jo Geom Jin In’s lips twitched.

“I’m not unaware that you’ve been conducting schemes. Don’t tell me you think you can defeat the main sect with such nonsense?”

“We’re doing this because we can’t win. And the expression ‘schemes’ is a bit much. We merely conducted investigations.”

“Shut up! Even now, if you surrender, I was thinking of finishing this by having you quietly step down from the Alliance Leader position, but you’re really crossing the line.”

“You crossed the line first.”

The two men glared at each other as if ready to kill.

That’s when it happened.

Wun Kyung and Sama Hyeon’s ears twitched. They had received telepathic messages from outside almost simultaneously.

And the moment they understood the content, both hurriedly conveyed the information to the representatives of this dialogue.

“…?”

Sama Jin Gung’s eyes widened as if they would tear while listening to the telepathic message.

And Jo Geom Jin In was the same. Rather, he seemed far more shocked.

Jo Geom Jin In turned to look at Wun Kyung and shouted.

“What kind of nonsensical talk is that!”

“M-Master. I only conveyed what I received from the informant.”

Then, Sama Jin Gung rose from his seat.

“You brought Mu Dang’s swordsmen nearby, didn’t you?”

Jo Geom Jin In looked back at him with a flustered face.

The corner of Sama Jin Gung’s mouth rose.

“Now those will be all the Taoist Priests of Mu Dang who follow the sect leader.”

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