Heaven-Defying Hero - Chapter 45
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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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#045
It was deep into the night.
A group emerged from the most luxurious room in the Pyo-guk. However, the figure who had left the room in an irritated manner stopped walking at the entrance of the Pyo-guk.
Looking at the Shandong Trading Company separated by just one wall, he ground his teeth loudly enough for those beside him to hear.
“You must leave.”
“How dare you give me orders? You too look down on me.”
The one flying into a rage was Hwangbo Taeseong. The one bowing his head before him was the Jo-jang of the Yeongho Unit.
“This is a message from the main house.”
At the middle-aged guard’s words, Hwangbo Taeseong irritably turned his body.
“I will definitely return. I’ll come back and kill all those bastards who ignored me.”
Grind.
He ground his teeth once more, but his anger didn’t subside in the least.
‘Me, fleeing in the night.’
He was being driven away, afraid of prying eyes.
Just as the third young master of the Hwangbo Clan, who had nothing to fear in Shandong Province, was leaving the port, one person moved urgently through the darkness.
It was Nam-sik, the chubby man from the Labor Agency.
Moving his fat body diligently, he ran toward Deungmyeong Manor.
But before he could even reach the main gate, someone leaped over the wall and stood before him.
“Lord! Huff. Huff.”
The one who appeared was Ja-gang-cheon.
“Catch your breath first.”
“N-no. I’m fine.”
“Take it slow. Speaking a little faster won’t change anything.”
Ja-gang-cheon patted Nam-sik’s back.
“Whew. Thank you, Lord.”
Nam-sik, whose rough breathing had calmed, immediately got to the point.
“Hwangbo Taeseong just fled in the night with his guards.”
“Did anyone else follow them?”
“No. Just four horses with simple bundles.”
“Thank you. This matter is absolutely secret. It could become dangerous if people find out.”
“Of course. I’ll forget it from my memory too.”
Nam-sik sealed his lips tightly as if to show his resolve, then bowed.
“Wait a moment.”
Ja-gang-cheon held out a box to him as he turned to leave.
“This is a newly released Deungmyeong elixir. It’ll be called Deungmyeong Divine Pill, and I’m giving it to you first.”
“Can I really accept something this precious?”
“Of course you should receive it.”
Those words sounded so warm that he felt warmth in the chilly night air.
“But Lord, should I keep this medicine secret too? I’d like to brag a little.”
“To whom?”
“Naturally to that bastard Seok-ho. And if possible, I’d like to show the Chief too…”
He mentioned the friend he was closest to and thus wanted to tease first.
“That sounds good. The Chief probably hasn’t actually seen the medicine yet either.”
“Then you’re giving permission!”
“Yes.”
Ja-gang-cheon’s expression turned cold as he watched Nam-sik, who had delivered the news, depart.
***
Even though they had slowed their horses’ pace due to the nighttime, they had covered quite a distance.
Nevertheless, they couldn’t travel through the entire night.
Judging that they had gotten sufficiently far from Jiao-nan, Hwangbo Taeseong stopped his horse himself and decided to make camp.
Since the sun would rise in two hours, now was the last chance to rest.
“Arghhhh!”
Hwangbo Taeseong let out a scream as he dismounted. He was venting the resentment he had been holding back.
His voice echoed through the forest near the road and returned as a fractured echo.
“We’ll prepare a place to sleep.”
Regardless of Hwangbo Taeseong’s condition, the Yeongho Unit remained faithful to their duties.
They first surveyed the forest near the road to confirm whether the sleeping area was safe.
But something was strange.
These men, experienced in camping, would usually scatter individually, briefly survey the surroundings, then gather again at similar times.
“Which way did Tae-gon go?”
At the Jo-jang’s question, the remaining man looked north. Then they heard movement and someone walked down from the forest.
The Jo-jang’s expression, which had been relieved inwardly, hardened immediately after.
The one who appeared was not his subordinate.
“Stand back.”
The Jo-jang stood in front of Hwangbo Taeseong, who had exhausted himself screaming.
“What’s happening!”
Only then realizing something had occurred, Hwangbo Taeseong turned his gaze.
Since the moon was quite bright, it wasn’t difficult to recognize the opponent’s face.
“Ja-gang-cheon! You bastard!”
The figure reflected in Hwangbo Taeseong’s bloodshot pupils was Ja-gang-cheon.
Wearing his usual gray light armor and holding a sword wrapped in silk cloth, he stood before the fleeing party.
“You’ve come looking for your death! What are you doing! Attack!”
Hwangbo Taeseong saw this moment as an opportunity.
He acknowledged that Ja-gang-cheon’s martial arts were stronger than his own, but the Yeongho Unit was beside him.
Especially since the Jo-jang of the Yeongho Unit was classified as a master even within the clan, there should be no problem dealing with Ja-gang-cheon.
“Protect the Third Young Master.”
The Jo-jang sensed an ominous atmosphere and moved his charge to the rear. Then he stood alone before Ja-gang-cheon.
Considering Ja-gang-cheon’s age, he knew there was absolutely no way he could lose, yet somehow he felt uneasy.
Above all, the resolute mouth maintaining silence and cold eyes rang instinctive alarm bells.
“What did you do to my subordinate?”
Ja-gang-cheon didn’t answer. Instead, he unwrapped the cloth covering his sword.
Swish.
A dark blade appeared as if drawn from the darkness itself.
Since it was a divine weapon that had disappeared long ago, the Jo-jang couldn’t recognize its true value.
Thud!
When Ja-gang-cheon didn’t wait and took the first step forward.
‘What the…’
It was a massive wave of energy.
He fell into the illusion that a house-sized tsunami was rising behind Ja-gang-cheon to engulf him.
He had merely swung the dark blade.
Under that tremendous pressure, he couldn’t even dream of counterattacking and hastily retreated.
Crash!
Thanks to quickly stepping back twice, the dark blade struck the ground. But fragments of energy starting from the cracked earth turned the entire area upside down.
Amidst the chaotically flying dirt, the Jo-jang urgently searched for his opponent.
‘Left side.’
Sensing the approaching energy wave, this time he succeeded in a perfect counterattack.
Bang!
He felt a heavy impact from his punch. But it wasn’t the striking sound he had expected.
‘An illusion.’
The explosive sound was from energy waves colliding in mid-air.
‘A feint.’
The moment he thought he had been deceived by the energy wave,
Swoosh!
A dark blade passed through his waist.
Instantly, Jo-jang’s pupils dilated rapidly and the light of life disappeared. At the same time, his body, split in two, fell in different directions.
Ja-gang-cheon watched his death with indifferent eyes, then picked up the silk cloth that had fallen to the ground.
“Your journey ends here.”
Ja-gang-cheon wrapped Mukryeomdo in the silk cloth and turned his gaze.
“Young Master! Please go!”
He saw the last guard shouting to Hwangbo Taeseong.
Judging that he couldn’t stop him, he was sending his charge away first.
Hwangbo Taeseong, who had been standing dazed, belatedly came to his senses and turned to flee.
Ja-gang-cheon watched this and moved leisurely. But despite his relaxed movement, his speed was by no means slow.
Whoosh!
He swung Mukryeomdo wrapped in cloth toward the guard blocking his path. As the guard hastily retreated to dodge, Ja-gang-cheon kicked off the ground and followed.
Without time to be amazed by that mysterious footwork, Ja-gang-cheon’s left hand pierced into his side.
Crack!
The sound of ribs breaking echoed, then something entered his body.
Thud.
Having easily dealt with the guard as well, Ja-gang-cheon pursued the last remaining Hwangbo Taeseong.
He had been fleeing for barely half an hour.
‘Damn it! I’ll kill him!’
Hwangbo Taeseong crouched behind a large tree in the forest and covered his mouth with both hands.
If he didn’t quickly calm his breathing, the grim reaper would find him.
He was suffocating, yet had to breathe carefully.
That breath between life and death seemed to stop at the boundary of Bukmangsan.
‘Why am I in such a state!’
A heavy, fog-like silence descended all around.
His breathing was calming, but for some reason, the sound of his heartbeat seemed to ring in his ears.
‘Where on earth.’
He belatedly realized that the anxious sound ringing in his ears was his own heartbeat.
And from the darkness where even moonlight was blocked, someone’s voice was heard.
“I’ll tell you what’s going to happen to you.”
Surprisingly, that voice came from behind.
It was from the opposite side of the massive tree he was leaning against.
It meant he had already been discovered.
“Do you really intend to kill me?”
To him who trusted his background to the end, Ja-gang-cheon said.
“You’re going to die here. And your corpse won’t be found. The Hwangbo Clan will probably waste quite a bit of manpower trying to find your whereabouts.”
“Do you think things will go as you wish? If I disappear, they’ll suspect you first.”
“I know. That’s why I left traces earlier. The Hwangbo Clan should be able to figure out quite a lot. Powerful blade techniques and profound internal energy. They won’t think that’s me though.”
Until now, Ja-gang-cheon had never shown himself using weapons. Moreover, with Mukryeomdo’s characteristics added to his original internal energy, the traces of energy waves were beyond imagination.
“Such cowardice…”
“Right. It’s cowardly. I came here intending to be cowardly from the start.”
Ja-gang-cheon slowly moved his steps.
“I thought a lot about what kind of beliefs I should live by. But seeing you, I clearly realized how I should live.”
Ja-gang-cheon walked through the darkness and stood before Hwangbo Taeseong, who was crouched down.
“Like a father to my people, like a mother to my enemies.”
“What nonsense!”
Hwangbo Taeseong, who had been crouched, straightened his body and made a final desperate struggle.
He was betting his life on a slim chance.
Whooom!
It was a strike loaded with all his internal energy.
‘Please hit.’
He had never prayed so desperately in his life. But if everything came true just because one was desperate, there would be no wronged people in the world.
Clap!
Surprisingly, Ja-gang-cheon caught the desperate strike with his bare hand.
It meant the difference in internal energy was stark.
“P-please spare me.”
Hwangbo Taeseong’s last pride crumbled. He had laid down his greatest asset.
Ja-gang-cheon’s answer to that was simple.
Crack!
Hwangbo Taeseong’s neck turned to the opposite side.
***
Early dawn.
Knock. Knock.
Someone knocked on the door of Deungmyeong Manor.
The manor members who had finished their exercises were about to go to the main gate when they heard the sound.
“I’ll go.”
“Lord. You came out?”
“We thought you were doing personal training.”
Ja-gang-cheon, who hadn’t shown up during the dawn exercise time today, appeared and opened the main gate himself.
“What brings you here so early in the morning?”
“Don’t we have something to discuss?”
The visitor was Hwangbo Jeong, the Shandong Trading Guild Leader.
Unable to tolerate information being passed to Hao-mun, he had come personally.
“Isn’t it too early for a guest visit? You have no manners.”
“Don’t criticize me too harshly. My nephew did wrong, so I came to resolve the situation as his uncle. The incident where your person was injured has nothing to do with our Shandong Trading Guild. You already know that much, don’t you?”
He was right.
According to what they found out through Gu Dong-gu, Hwangbo Jeong knew nothing about the attack incident.
“If that’s true, then you wouldn’t have reason to visit so early.”
“I’m keeping to the line, but I heard you’re crossing it. Stop passing information related to our clan to Hao-mun.”
Ja-gang-cheon spoke in a firm voice.
“Since my person was injured, I’ll decide how to proceed. If you stay quiet like now, you won’t become an enemy, but if you interfere even a little, you’ll have to take responsibility for Hwangbo Taeseong’s crimes together.”
The words were long, but the meaning was simple.
“Don’t interfere. Then nothing will happen.”
“And if I don’t?”
“I’ll follow the natural order of Gangho.”
“Are you daring to threaten me?”
“I’m not interested in nitpicking words. I’ve said everything I need to say, so please leave.”
Ja-gang-cheon boldly issued an order to leave. From Hwangbo Jeong’s perspective, he hadn’t even been able to bring up the main point.
‘I must prevent Hao-mun and Deungmyeong Manor from being on the same boat.’
He had come with that thought, but Ja-gang-cheon didn’t even allow a chance for negotiation from the start.
“I still have more to say…”
“Farewell.”
Bang!
Ja-gang-cheon slammed the door shut roughly.
“This crazy bastard…”
At this first-ever experience of being turned away at the door, Hwangbo Jeong’s body trembled with rage.
That’s when it happened.
“I didn’t expect to meet the Merchant Guild Leader here.”
At the gentle voice of a woman, Hwangbo Jeong turned around.
“Yeon-hee of Hao-mun greets the Merchant Guild Leader.”
Yeon-hee, wearing a relaxed smile, slowly bowed her head.
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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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