Emperor Namgung Mu of the Thousand Years - Chapter 55

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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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#055

 

“Please take this.”

 

Right after the discussion, Master Dangmujin left to check on the Young Master.

 

Left alone with Steward Gam, I handed him a document.

 

“I don’t know what will happen from now on, but if I don’t appear by the time I mentioned, please ask the Master to look at this.”

 

I briefly added.

 

“No matter how I think about it, given the content, it would be better for Steward Gam, whom the Master favors, to deliver it rather than me boldly presenting it myself.”

 

“Namgung Hwi. What is… this?”

 

“If Dangmutae disappears, his first priority will be to flee to a hideout prepared by Ilsikya who has been protecting him. I don’t know exactly where he’ll go yet, but I’ve narrowed it down to ten places where Ilsikya likely prepared additional hideouts according to his habits, including inside the silver mine and the surrounding area.”

 

Steward Gam was shocked.

 

“Just how far does Namgung Hwi’s knowledge extend? How do you know Ilsikya’s habits… No, setting that aside, when did you manage to check all these surroundings in the midst of being so busy?”

 

“I surveyed the surroundings while moving along various routes.”

 

“…In those brief moments when you were talking with me non-stop?”

 

“I tend to glance around quite a bit.”

 

Steward Gam, looking at the document, clicked his tongue.

 

“…Even a spy trained for over ten years wouldn’t be this thorough. Of course, there are some errors, but it’s unbelievable that you made these judgments and estimates just from looking at the surface. Rather, the scattered errors here and there show that this wasn’t leaked inside information, but judgments made with your eyes…”

 

Steward Gam suddenly asked.

 

“Why didn’t you discuss this earlier as well, and why are you deliberately delivering it through me now?”

 

“Large-scale searches based on uncertain information only add to confusion. But if I don’t return, abandon any attachment to me and move using this as reference—it’ll be better than having nothing.”

 

“…Earlier, you said you were confident.”

 

“Being confident and preparing for danger are separate matters. I don’t even know the opponent’s true nature clearly.”

 

Steward Gam stared at the note for a long time.

 

Then he nodded and tucked it into his chest.

 

“What is the reason Namgung Hwi is going this far? It doesn’t make sense. Anyone can see you’re risking your life right now.”

 

“Right now, I’m someone who has nothing but his life to wager, aren’t I? I’m just betting what I have. If I had something else, I would have bet that instead.”

 

I smiled wryly.

 

“Of course, what I want—if things go well, I’ll discuss that when the time comes.”

 

“…Just what.”

 

Steward Gam said.

 

“What is driving Namgung Hwi so hellishly like this?”

 

“…That aside.”

 

I changed the subject.

 

“What do you think about the Elder? Do you have any guesses? As far as I know, the Elder has been protecting the Dang Family since the previous Master’s time.”

 

“Ah, if it’s about that, something comes to mind.”

 

Steward Gam thought carefully and continued.

 

“He always said when drunk. That if he could, he’d want to undo the choice from ten years ago. Even if it meant sacrificing everything. He bitterly regretted that choice.”

 

“He wants to undo a choice from ten years ago?”

 

“Yes, come to think of it… his current trained body might be proof of that too.”

 

I remember the Elder’s body too.

 

In this Sichuan Tang Family that fights with hidden weapons and poison techniques, it was a steel-like muscular body trained to an extreme rarely seen.

 

Rather than the characteristic of an old master who fights with deepening internal energy as his body weakens with age, it was something I had taken note of.

 

“What exactly happened ten years ago?”

 

“It’s something common in the Martial Arts World, in a way.”

 

Steward Gam said.

 

“An unexpected enemy attacked right to the heart of the Sichuan Tang Family. The Master was injured, and Elder Dangmutae held them off alone until reinforcements arrived, even having his danjeon crushed.”

 

***

 

-Whoooosh!!

 

In the torrential rain, I gasped for rough breaths.

 

“Are they following?”

 

I hide behind a tree and focus on my hearing.

 

No footsteps or signs of people can be heard.

 

In the torrential rain, all living creatures have fallen asleep, and only the sound of raindrops beating the leaves can be heard.

 

There are definitely no pursuit teams.

 

Only in the far distance, countless torches writhe like a fire dragon struggling, but they’re searching the wrong places, their claws not pointing toward here.

 

Moreover, having left the Jiakpaekyeong’s ore-rich cliff area, I confirm that my internal energy operates without problems.

 

The response is fine.

 

While keeping watch in all directions and catching my breath, I stabilize my body through breathing exercises and review everything one by one.

 

Assassins are inferior versions of martial artists.

 

They’re treated as tools of martial artists, treated like disposable iron swords.

 

No expectations from the start.

 

Moreover, having crawled up from the very bottom in that world of killing, there truly wasn’t a mission I hadn’t done.

 

In carrying out such missions, I often felt quite empty or doubtful.

 

But I can say with certainty that being this dazed is rare.

 

“The condition of the Baekhwamodo… why?”

 

Being surprised is one thing.

 

What must be done is another.

 

Pure white torrential rain.

 

Under my gasping white breath, wounds all over my body are visible.

 

My hands move quickly as I’ve done countless times in my previous life.

 

Applying wound medicine to abrasions, taking pain relief pills to manage the pain, and finally rubbing the tip of my last remaining awl against a nearby stone to sharpen it again before storing it.

 

All processes continue without rest.

 

But throughout all these processes, what filled my mind was ‘why on earth?’

 

‘A fake…? Could they have placed a fake? No. That can’t be. Stay calm, Namgung Hwi.’

 

Of course, sometimes they deliberately place a fake under tight security and put the real item in a poorly guarded place as a form of misdirection.

 

But there are limits to that too.

 

Based on the situation so far, the Hwangbo Family likely possessed a rubbing of the Mandokgihae with Jacheonamsa’s formula and handed it to the Elder.

 

No matter how declined they are, even if they might be pushed out of the Five Great Families, the Sichuan Tang Family couldn’t be unaware of the importance of the Baekhwamodo that holds the lifeline of a great family.

 

But to place a fake for the security of such an item?

 

And after installing not one but two of the Jegal Family’s mechanism formations bought with a fortune?

 

And the real item would definitely be placed in a third location with less security than this.

 

Considering the enormous costs and relationship consumption that would have been invested, it’s too excessive.

 

If the security had been mediocre, that might have been possible, but considering the degree of the final shell activation, that level was too much.

 

‘Moreover, the aura I saw just before the final theft was definitely that of Baekhwamodo.’

 

No matter how hastily I gathered the medicinal materials, I have a discerning eye.

 

I’ve seen these ginseng-type elixirs before, and miraculous ones have their distinctive atmosphere. When I first saw the Baekhwamodo, I definitely felt that energy.

 

Not normally, but when my five senses were extremely sharpened by tension, I absolutely couldn’t have missed it.

 

Then…

 

“…There’s something I missed.”

 

Bending my waist to avoid getting wet by the rain and creating a shelter, I take out the three Baekhwamodo roots from the bundle again.

 

They certainly still have medicinal effects, but anyone can see that even combining all three roots wouldn’t achieve the proper efficacy of one root.

 

I examine them carefully.

 

The degree of drying.

 

The degree of dying.

 

“Spots?”

 

Looking closely at the roots of the Baekhwamodo, there were spots like age spots.

 

They weren’t formed in a short period of time.

 

“Withered…?”

 

Looking again, it seemed certain.

 

It had withered and its medicinal efficacy seemed reduced.

 

Moreover, the degree of withering was clearly something that had been going on for a long time.

 

In other words, what had been in a state just before dying had rapidly accelerated.

 

From the beginning, when it was stored at the Hwangbo Family, its condition wasn’t very good.

 

They had neglected that precious Baekhwamodo and let it wither.

 

Nonsense.

 

Then there must be a reason why it had no choice but to wither.

 

For a spiritual object of this level, it’s not a simple reason like regularly watering it or something like that.

 

The Hwangbo Family wouldn’t neglect it for such reasons either. If even the Hwangbo Family had no choice but to let it wither, then the reason is.

 

“…There were silver ingots on top of the Baekhwamodo.”

 

I suddenly remembered clearing away the silver lumps that had been placed on top just before taking the Baekhwamodo roots.

 

“Speaking of silver.”

 

The next memory that naturally came to mind was the record about Baekhwamodo that I saw in the hidden plaza inside the mine.

 

[Conditional transfer of one bottle of degraded Jacheonamsa and Baekhwamodo.]

 

[…Once again urging Elder to deliver three moonlight stones and more than five boxes of pure silver ingots… Though holding out with silver ingots, there’s a limit… Moonlight stones are absolutely necessary for Baekhwamodo…]

 

“…Moonlight stones. Was this the card Elder had to balance against the Hwangbo Family?”

 

To summarize, the harvested Baekhwamodo withers in real time.

 

Silver somewhat prevents such withering, but ultimately, to prevent withering, moonlight stones, which are the superior version of silver, are needed.

 

Sichuan has many mountain ranges, so minerals are abundant. Among them, what stands out most is silver. Because silver is abundant, they would certainly have many moonlight stones, which are truly precious elsewhere but have high purity concentrations higher than anywhere else in the martial arts world, and securing moonlight stones wouldn’t have been a problem for Elder who occupied the highest quality silver mine in Sichuan.

 

‘That fox Elder wasn’t completely trusting the Hwangbo Family either.’

 

It made sense.

 

The document records I discovered along with the Mandokgihae were traces of the fierce underwater battle between the Hwangbo Family and Elder Dang Mutai, who had formed a temporary alliance to devour the Sacheon Tang Family.

 

‘Elder also gave the Baekhwamodo, but used not giving the promised moonlight stones as a card to pressure the Hwangbo Family. So as not to be dragged around.’

 

I organize my thoughts up to this point.

 

My preparations were also complete.

 

“First, I leave.”

 

I don’t know exactly what it might be, but it could be a large-scale search of this area.

 

Though the distance has increased, if I hesitate here, I’ll get swept up in it.

 

Taking the almost dried-up withered Baekhwamodo, I turn my steps toward the main gate of the Sacheon Tang Family.

 

“I don’t know if it will work or not, but I’ll first hand over these three withered Baekhwamodo roots to the Young Master. After that, I’ll leave it to heaven-.”

 

-Boom…!!

 

Startled, I looked up at the sky.

 

In the distance, what burst forth from the Jiak Paegyeong Fortress was a signal flare like giant fireworks.

 

The white-blue signal was clearly intended to announce something to anyone who saw it.

 

Its purpose is obvious.

 

The higher-ups must have learned that even the internal mechanism formations were breached and all the Baekhwamodo was stolen, and they’re announcing it to everyone while ordering appropriate countermeasures.

 

-Bang… Boom!

 

In the distance, looking at those signal flares that anyone would see if they were watching this place even by chance, I think.

 

Could Elder really not see that?

 

No. He definitely would have seen it.

 

At the very least, he had his subordinates watching, and he would certainly see those signal flares.

 

“Damn it, if Elder notices and disappears, I won’t be able to catch him.”

 

Elder definitely knows.

 

That the Hwangbo Family also doesn’t trust him.

 

And that they would have stored various documents exchanged with him separately, and the moment he sees those signal flares announcing the theft of Baekhwamodo, he’ll judge that everything has been exposed and move.

 

In the worst case, as soon as those signal flares went off, he might be organizing everything and fleeing to a hideout he prepared in advance. That hideout might even be something Eclipsenight’s Five Peaks of Wol-ak prepared in advance.

 

It’s complicated.

 

What should I do.

 

-Rustle…!

 

Though I run through the grassland at high speed, cutting through the brush across the vast field, my mind was complicated.

 

It’s a half-success.

 

I hadn’t expected that all three roots of the stolen Baekhwamodo would be withered to the point of being almost useless.

 

I’m taking them with me, but even if I combine all three roots and have the Young Master consume them, I couldn’t be certain whether there would be any effect since I’m not an expert.

 

Moreover, regarding the backup plan of securing Elder’s person and the one Baekhwamodo root he would have, I hadn’t expected the Jiak Paegyeong Fortress to scatter signal flares in all directions to announce it like that.

 

Though I’m rushing now, if Elder has already disappeared, I have no confidence in catching him.

 

Because I don’t know where to start tracking his traces again.

 

This unpleasant and confusing feeling of having to move based only on the probability that Elder hasn’t seen that signal yet.

 

The heavy rain stops above my form running toward the Sacheon Tang Family.

 

The fierce strong wind scatters the huge clouds.

 

The world grows brighter.

 

And a question that suddenly occurred to me.

 

“Come to think of it, why did Elder specifically want to keep one Baekhwamodo root for himself?”

 

My steps slow down.

 

“…Specifically…?”

 

He’s not the one poisoned by Jacheonamsa.

 

Threatening the Young Master who was poisoned by Jacheonamsa is the Hwangbo Family’s role, not his.

 

But why specifically?

 

What he wants is.

 

Apart from personal revenge against the Sacheon Tang Family or such things, something more.

 

If there’s a more fundamental deficiency that would make him insist to the Hwangbo Family that he must keep one root for himself, whatever reason he gives…

 

“…!”

 

What flashed like white lightning was another record I saw in the plaza, a passage from the Mandokgihae rubbing.

 

[…Jacheonamsa and Baekhwamodo are both conflicting and complementary. Regarding silver, Jacheonamsa disperses upon contact with silver, and Baekhwamodo, which detoxifies Jacheonamsa, becomes stronger.]

 

[…Once harvested, Baekhwamodo continuously weakens in energy…]

 

[Baekhwamodo has a strong absorptive nature that draws and absorbs energy from each other, surpassing even the thousand-year snow ginseng of the same form. This applies even to bodies within half a hour of consumption without exception-.]

 

[…Five times at monthly intervals, it must be exposed to full moon light reflected on moonlight stones at the hour of the Rat to revive, and beyond this it becomes strong… its end is the restoration of even broken danjeon…]

 

“…Danjeon.”

 

Now I could understand.

 

“Danjeon restoration…!”

 

If the energy of Baekhwamodo can weaken, and conversely, it’s also possible for it to become strong.

 

And if he’s specifically keeping one Baekhwamodo root for himself and carefully preserving it, he would be focusing on amplifying the energy of Baekhwamodo.

 

If he saw that signal, he would know that not only was the Baekhwamodo stolen, but the documents beside it also disappeared.

 

This means Elder’s destruction.

 

If he, who was watching everything he had worked for disappear like a mirage just before success, tries to salvage at least one thing…

 

-…

 

The world became bright.

 

Below the vast field.

 

Under the dark clouds dispersing after the thunderstorm had passed, what rose in the sky was a massive full moon.

 

“…So that’s where it is.”

 

I turn my steps around.

 

I dash forward with full-powered footwork.

 

At this very moment, that was the only place where Dangmutae could be risking danger.

 

….

 

….

 

.

 

-Thud…!

 

Cold air.

 

The faint smell of old dust lingering at my nose.

 

-Rumble….

 

In my ears, the sound of massive underground water flowing like a waterfall filled the plaza.

 

The white light of the full moon shining down on the center of the plaza poured through a giant crack in the cave ceiling, gathering at the center of the altar.

 

In the middle of that altar was a shelf made of moonstone.

 

“…How did you get all the way here…?”

 

This place I finally arrived at after sprinting at full speed from Jiakpaekyeong.

 

The depths of the Sacheon Dangga Silver Mine.

 

It was the vast cavern past the Weorak Five Peaks Hermitage, where the rubbings of the Mandokgihae had been.

 

“Ruining everything I had wasn’t enough… you came all the way here. Yes… I had suspected it.”

 

On the altar-like massive glowing moonstone platform, in the place where moonlight shone down.

 

The old man who had placed the Baekhwamodo there turns around.

 

“To think you would crawl all the way here, to the very end, trying to trample everything I have… it was you all along.”

 

Looking down at me, Dangmutae screamed with hellish hatred.

 

“It was you, you bastard son of Namgung!!”

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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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