Heaven-Defying Hero - Chapter 111

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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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#111

Hobuk Yakwanggwa.

For the past 10 years, it had been the most famous manor among the nearby ginseng diggers and woodcutters.

-The final resting place for mountain people.

It was a place that soothed not only the weary bodies but also the hearts of mountain people who received unfair treatment.

Since such a person became the Chosan Association leader, it was natural that all the nearby mountain people would flock there.

-Chosan Association leader Chae Geonra’s martial arts may not be outstanding, but his character is the best in history.

His role was decisive in helping the revived Chosan Association quickly find stability.

Therefore, Hobuk Yakwanggwa was always visited by many people, and like Chae Geonra’s personality, it was lively and full of laughter.

“Subordinate! Today I…”

“Shh.”

Do Chil, who discovered a thirty-year-old wild ginseng that could only be found with ancestral help, immediately rushed to Hobuk Yakwanggwa.

This was because Hobuk Yakwanggwa always bought precious medicinal herbs at fair prices.

But today was strange.

“What’s wrong?”

“Speak quietly. An uncomfortable guest has arrived.”

“An uncomfortable guest?”

“Let me see. This is good ginseng. I’ll purchase it for seventy silver taels.”

Hobuk Yakwanggwa didn’t haggle. There was no need to, as they paid more than fair price for good medicinal materials.

“Thank you, Subordinate.”

Do Chil, who had secretly hoped for fifty silver taels, handed over the ginseng without a word.

“But who came?”

“A Nokrim Chongpyo-pa member.”

“Gasp!”

Do Chil covered his mouth.

“Why did that bandit leader come?”

“Tsk. This man. Watch your words.”

Not only Do Chil but all ginseng diggers disliked Nokrim.

Since they lived on the same mountain, it was inevitable that they would frequently encounter each other.

But the attitude of Nokrimdo toward ginseng diggers was always high-handed.

-Acting like a landlord when they’re not even the owner!

There was no owner of the mountain, yet they tormented them like evil landlords, so naturally the ginseng diggers and woodcutters disliked them.

Things had improved somewhat since the Chosan Association’s revival, but they were still an uncomfortable presence.

“Did they come to oppress our Lord? Should I grab a hoe?”

Far from being moved by his loyal appearance, the Subordinate glared at him.

“Don’t throw your life away uselessly and leave quickly. Someone who can handle them came along too.”

“Who is that?”

“Deungmyeong Jangju has come.”

“Oh? My goodness. If such a precious person has come, I should at least greet…”

“One more word and the ginseng price might drop to sixty silver taels.”

“Hey. How can it suddenly drop by ten silver taels?”

“Market prices are bound to change, aren’t they? Come to think of it, you just said one word.”

“No, no I didn’t.”

Do Chil received seven ten-tael bills and quickly left the manor.

The Subordinate, who had shown a smile watching his retreating figure, soon wore a worried expression again.

“Why did our Lord create such a powder keg situation?”

Then, the door of the room the Subordinate was watching opened.

Chae Geonra, who only poked his face out, looked at the Subordinate and frowned.

‘Come quickly!’

He didn’t make a sound, but said so with his lip movements and expression.

Though the Lord calling him to an uncomfortable situation was annoying, the Subordinate was also anxious to leave him alone, so he followed the instruction.

“The tea seems to have cooled, so I’ll change it.”

The Subordinate gathered all the cold teacups and replaced them with new ones.

“This is Cheongshim Bowon tea brewed with ginseng, astragalus, and jujube. It will help chase away the remaining late cold. If I may add from concern, this is very expensive tea.”

The last words were said to break the heavy silence that had settled in the room.

But only a chilly atmosphere lingered as if a north wind had passed through.

‘The Young Master’s stubbornness is remarkable.’

This was the Subordinate’s second time seeing Ja-gang-cheon.

The current Subordinate was the one who had gone with Chae Geonra during the time when the Chosan Association decided to revive.

The Ja-gang-cheon he saw then had the feeling of an innocent and bright young boy, but now he was emanating an aura that overwhelmed the surrounding atmosphere.

The current uncomfortable atmosphere was created by Ja-gang-cheon.

“Then please continue your conversation.”

When the Subordinate greeted them, Chae Geonra subtly grabbed his trouser hem.

‘Stay here with me.’

His expression was so earnest that his inner thoughts seemed audible.

Indeed, being between a mountain bandit leader who was one of the Murim Sip-dae Gosu and the top Hu-gi Jisu who opposed him wouldn’t be easy.

‘A man with weak martial arts too.’

But if one person being uncomfortable would suffice, why should two people be uncomfortable?

‘Let go.’

The Subordinate coldly pulled his pants away and left the room.

With the Subordinate gone, silence descended on the place again.

‘I shouldn’t have brought them.’

Chae Geonra regretted it.

He was the one who brought Nokrim Chongpyo-pa member Beom Ja-yang and Ja-gang-cheon, who had intruded on the boat, to the manor.

It was to make the atmosphere even slightly softer, but that had created the current situation.

‘By the way, Deungmyeong Jangju isn’t normal either. Having a battle of wills with a Nokrim Chongpyo-pa member.’

Ja-gang-cheon had maintained silence continuously after a brief greeting on the boat.

Beom Ja-yang was also uncomfortable at first, but now closed his mouth with the attitude of seeing who would win.

But even that stubbornness seemed to be gradually breaking. Beom Ja-yang’s bushy beard began to tremble.

Finally, Beom Ja-yang, whose patience had reached its limit, picked up his teacup and put it down loudly.

Thud!

Chae Geonra was slightly startled by the noise that echoed in the quiet. But Ja-gang-cheon wasn’t.

He remained there as if he had become a stone statue.

‘Why is he acting like that?’

Though Chae Geonra was puzzled, in fact Ja-gang-cheon hadn’t even heard the sound of the teacup.

‘I’m screwed.’

He was deeply absorbed in that thought.

‘Since I couldn’t buy time, Cheon-gu’s plan failed too. What should I do?’

He had been thinking that throughout the journey from the boat to here. In fact, he hadn’t even realized when he entered Hobuk Yakwanggwa or how he came to sit in the current chair.

‘I have to save this plan!’

He had only repeated that thought. But it was a problem with no answer from the beginning.

Even if he tried to fix an already broken mirror, he couldn’t eliminate the cracks.

Just as he was about to acknowledge the plan’s failure, he felt an aura threatening his body.

No matter how out of it he was, he instinctively reacted to such an aura.

Bang!

“The Young Master is ignoring me too much.”

Unable to endure it, Beom Ja-yang struck the table and stood up.

“What’s wrong?”

At that innocent expression, both Beom Ja-yang and Chae Geonra were dumbfounded.

“Are you asking why I’m acting like this now? Do you really not know?”

“I’m asking because I don’t know.”

“On Dongho’s ship, you said ‘Wait a moment!’ And you still haven’t said what came after. Are you testing the limits of my patience?”

“I was going to tell you once we sat down.”

“I thought so too and waited plenty. But to disrespect me this much…”

“Plenty?”

Ja-gang-cheon didn’t back down and frowned.

“Chong-pyo-pa-ja, you need to cultivate more patience. I’m not a fool – are you trying to deceive me right in front of my face?”

“What? Deceive?”

“Steam is still rising from the teacup. You can’t even wait that long?”

Beom Ja-yang was so dumbfounded he was speechless. Just as his anger was about to explode, Chae Geonra stopped him.

“It doesn’t seem like a lie. One can momentarily lose track of time.”

As Chae Geonra said, if he had intended to deceive, he would have made a more plausible excuse.

Regardless of their feelings, Ja-gang-cheon had finally finished his deliberation.

‘Let go of lingering attachments.’

If he had succeeded in buying time, Cheon-gu would have mobilized his connections to pressure Nokrim.

-I’ll arrange a meeting with the East Sea Merchant Guild Leader and the Governor of Hubei, who is the military’s chief administrator in Hubei Province.

What Nokrim found most troublesome wasn’t the martial arts world, but the military. Many bandits were people who had fled to the mountains for various reasons.

The reason many bandits wanted to belong to Nokrim was because it made them somewhat untouchable by the military.

However, the military’s chief administrator in Hubei Province was different. A friend of the Governor of Hubei being oppressed by Nokrim would be an entirely different story.

Non-interference between officials and martial artists.

They shouldn’t interfere with each other.

Regardless of past situations, if the Merchant Guild Leader and Governor of Hubei formed deep ties, Nokrim would no longer be able to interfere.

Particularly choosing Hubei was because Nokrim’s headquarters was located there.

-Nokrim would accept simply extending the existing contract.

In fact, the continent’s greatest merchant guild, the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild, was doing exactly that. They had royalty backing them.

To make this happen, Cheon-gu was even prepared to use the corruption ledgers secured from the Hwangbo Clan. That’s why he needed time to verify the truth of the ledger’s contents.

‘Now that’s fallen through. I have to do it my way.’

Since he had encountered Chong-pyo-pa-ja before Cheon-gu could even reach Hubei Province, Ja-gang-cheon had no choice but to resolve this himself.

“Anyway, if I kept you waiting, I apologize. Actually, I was flustered because you appeared so suddenly. Now that I’ve sorted things out, let me formally greet you.”

Ja-gang-cheon stood up from his seat and cupped his fists.

“I am Ja-gang-cheon of Deungmyeong Manor. Thank you for allowing this negotiation.”

“Now you do this?”

“Chong-pyo-pa-ja.”

At Chae Geonra’s mediation, Beom Ja-yang grudgingly accepted the greeting.

“I’ll let it slide this once.”

He let out a long sigh to calm his anger and sat back down.

Watching him sit in the chair and straighten his shoulders, Ja-gang-cheon thought the nickname Iron Bear Mountain God suited him perfectly.

Beom Ja-yang was reminiscent of a bear.

With broad shoulders and long arms, half his face was covered with a beard, and his long hair was tied in a topknot, making his already massive face appear even larger.

After the previous Nokrim Chong-pyo-pa-ja died, there was fierce competition for the position, which Beom Ja-yang had overwhelmingly won.

-He’s one step away from the Five Greatest Under Heaven.

Many people evaluated his martial arts this way.

Though he couldn’t join the Five Greatest Under Heaven representing the martial arts world, he was evaluated as the closest to that level.

-Never even think about fighting him.

This was why Cheon-gu had repeatedly warned him.

“Before we negotiate, let me say that under no circumstances should you touch our people again. This method is very unpleasant.”

Thanks to Cheon-gu’s strategy failing, Ja-gang-cheon’s actions had actually become freer. From now on, he had to take direct control.

“That’s Nokrim’s way. If you had known and prepared in advance, such things wouldn’t have happened.”

“I’m not trying to dwell on the past. Just please be careful from now on.”

“If this negotiation goes well, that might be possible.”

Beom Ja-yang knew well that he held the upper hand.

‘In the end, you’ll have to bow your head.’

The reason he had personally come out to greet them was to see that scene quickly.

‘Without our permission, a nationwide merchant guild is impossible.’

Knowing this, Beom Ja-yang had decided to conduct the best negotiation in history. Of course, that meant from Nokrim’s perspective – from Ja-gang-cheon’s perspective, it would be the worst negotiation.

Just as he was reaffirming this resolve.

“Shall we make a bet?”

“What did you just say?”

“I heard you like betting.”

It was a well-known fact that Iron Bear Mountain God Beom Ja-yang loved betting.

Even when ascending to the position of Nokrim Chong-pyo-pa-ja, the story of how he spared his competitors’ lives through betting after defeating them was famous.

“You’re mistaken about something. What I like isn’t just any bet, but bets that favor me.”

“I know. That’s the kind of bet I want to make.”

“I’m curious. Let’s hear it.”

Ja-gang-cheon announced the beginning of the plan that Cheon-gu had opposed.

“I’ll open Chui-san Hyeol-gung for you.”

Chui-san Hyeol-gung.

Chui-san Hyeol-gung was the treasure vault where all of Nokrim’s treasures were said to slumber.

It was Nokrim’s sacred ground that only Chong-pyo-pa-ja could enter, but it was currently sealed shut.

The Nokrim Command Token.

This was because the key that could open the doors of Chui-san Hyeol-gung had disappeared.

From Beom Ja-yang’s perspective, it was an infuriating situation where he couldn’t exercise authority he should naturally possess.

Particularly, not being able to retrieve the Nokrim Sacred Sword, Nokrim’s divine artifact, during his coronation ceremony as Chong-pyo-pa-ja and having to proceed empty-handed was something that would haunt him forever.

For an outsider to mention such a place, there was no way his mind could be at peace.

“Do you know what you just said?”

Beom Ja-yang bared his upper teeth like a wild beast and growled.

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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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