Heaven-Defying Hero - 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

 

Cheon-gu, who had returned to the manor, headed to the cargo hold.

 

There was a tiger cub who had lost his family before his eyes and was left with nothing but rage.

 

“You bastard! Do you think you’ll get away with this!”

 

At Hwangbo Taesan’s threat, baring his teeth, Cheon-gu made an indifferent expression.

 

“As you can see, I’m fine, so worry about yourself.”

 

“Shut up! If you don’t untie this right now, I’ll tear you limb from limb!”

 

Cheon-gu looked down at Hwangbo Taesan, who couldn’t even stand up because he was bound in chains.

 

“You’re mistaken about something. While we do need you, it doesn’t necessarily have to be you alive.”

 

“What?”

 

“I’m saying it doesn’t matter if we kill you. All we need is a little time.”

 

“You underestimate the Great Hwangbo Clan far too much. Do you think you’ll be safe after doing this? You’re mistaken if you think this is the extent of our power.”

 

“How pitiful.”

 

“What?”

 

“The Hwangbo Clan has already abandoned you, yet you still believe in them. It’s pathetic.”

 

“Shut up! The clan abandoning me!”

 

“It’s been ten days since we captured you. But there hasn’t been even a single contact from the clan. You know what that means, right?”

 

Hwangbo Taesan’s lips trembled slightly as he spoke.

 

“The clan must be preparing something.”

 

“Are you stupid? Or are you pretending to be stupid?”

 

At Cheon-gu’s pointed remark, Hwangbo Taesan glared with fierce eyes. Seeing that look, Cheon-gu spoke as if he found it pathetic.

 

“The Lord is dead, and you, who was designated as the successor, have been taken hostage. In that situation, they have to wage an all-out war with our manor. So what do you think they’d do first?”

 

Hwangbo Taesan remained silent, but Cheon-gu did not.

 

“They’d choose a new decision-maker. And conveniently, there’s someone to take that position.”

 

Cheon-gu saw new anger rising on Hwangbo Taesan’s face.

 

“Hwangbo Taejin. The second son of the Hwangbo Clan. Your younger brother who competed fiercely with you for succession.”

 

“He’s of Hwangbo blood. He will surely punish you.”

 

“Well, I’m prepared for that so it doesn’t matter to me, but are you okay? It seems like he wants to punish you too.”

 

“Shut up!”

 

“You know it too. Your brother won’t rescue you. There’s no reason for him to save you and give up the Lord’s position. Only if you die can he become the Lord of the Hwangbo Clan.”

 

Cheon-gu had heard one piece of information through Hao-mun.

 

“The succession battle was that fierce, wasn’t it? Hwangbo Taejin was so angry about losing to you that he went into secluded training. That secluded training must have ended with this incident.”

 

Cheon-gu saw Hwangbo Taesan’s eyebrows trembling as he remained silent.

 

“This is exactly your role. Your brother carefully planning to kill you. That gives us enough time.”

 

“These insolent bastards…”

 

“If you want to die just cursing, go ahead. If it were me, I would have tried to grab the last opportunity.”

 

“You flick your tongue like a snake! Do you think I’ll fall for it!”

 

“If you don’t like it, forget it.”

 

Cheon-gu turned around without any regret.

 

“Get lost! Do you think I’d trust the one who killed my father and household!”

 

Knowing this, Cheon-gu was in no hurry.

 

‘He needs to vent like that before I can examine his next emotions.’

 

Right now, he had come in to receive curses.

 

‘Face reality. You’re desperate for that too.’

 

Cheon-gu left the cargo hold, promising to return tomorrow.

 

***

 

Ja-gang-cheon looked up at the high mountain.

 

“So this is Taesan.”

 

Mount Tai, Shandong Province.

 

It was famous as a beautiful mountain worthy of being called the first of the Five Sacred Mountains of the Central Plains.

 

Taesan was a place of great religious significance, where newly enthroned emperors would offer sacrifices.

 

Having arrived at Shandong Province’s greatest sacred site, Ja-gang-cheon toured Taesan following other crowds.

 

“Should I have come with Cheon-gu? It’s boring alone.”

 

Muttering to himself, Ja-gang-cheon glanced to the side.

 

“Ah. Sorry. I wasn’t alone.”

 

“It’s fine.”

 

Miho never spoke beyond necessary words, regardless of whose side she was on. This meant she was currently beside Ja-gang-cheon with a purpose.

 

“Hmm. I didn’t know a person could be this uncomfortable.”

 

“I’ll keep more distance.”

 

When Miho actually tried to move away, Ja-gang-cheon shook his head.

 

“There was someone who knew even less about the world than me.”

 

“This is how I live.”

 

“I acknowledge that. But have you ever thought about how that personality and behavior affects the work we do together?”

 

“There’s no reason for me to cater to your mood, Lord.”

 

At her sharp response, Ja-gang-cheon said,

 

“I feel sorry for Yeon-hee.”

 

“That’s harsh.”

 

“I try to learn from Cheon-gu. But you don’t seem to have any intention of learning from Yeon-hee.”

 

Miho was at a loss for words.

 

“Yeon-hee makes an effort with everyone. Why don’t you learn that? You say you respect her, but your actions don’t show it.”

 

Seeing her silence, Ja-gang-cheon decided to stop giving advice.

 

“Let’s just work. I don’t want to make an effort for someone who doesn’t try either.”

 

Ja-gang-cheon came down from Taesan.

 

“This is Taean, right?”

 

“Yes.”

 

The reason Miho was accompanying Ja-gang-cheon was to guide him to Taean, which was unfamiliar territory.

 

Taesan was as wide as it was tall, touching several villages – to the north it bordered Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province, and to the south was Taean.

 

“Miryo Guesthouse is this way. We’re meeting in a separate room in the rear garden.”

 

“Miryo Guesthouse is owned by Hao-mun, right?”

 

Even though it was obvious information, Miho didn’t answer.

 

Ja-gang-cheon didn’t bother to press and followed her guidance.

 

The Miryo Guesthouse they arrived at was much larger than expected. Even though it was well past lunchtime, there were many customers and several waitstaff moving busily.

 

‘So this kind of place is owned by Hao-mun.’

 

Having only seen the black market in Jiao-nan, he had never seen the real face of Hao-mun.

 

In any case, they went to the rear garden through a door opened by a waitstaff without any restrictions and entered a byeolchae built for premium guests.

 

When they opened the door and entered, Ak-pung-jin, who recognized Ja-gang-cheon first, jumped up from his seat.

 

“I greet my benefactor.”

 

Starting with him, everyone began greeting.

 

There were six people in total, all of whom had maintained relationships with Ak-pung-jin from before.

 

“I’m Lee Han-jin, who once operated Jungsan Pharmacy. Now I run a small herbal medicine shop in the countryside after having my pharmacy taken by the Hwangbo Clan.”

 

Jungsan Pharmacy was a major herbal medicine business that ranked in the top five in Shandong Province just twenty years ago.

 

“I’m Gil Jeong-man, who operated Jinan Textile Shop. Now I run a small salt works with my former merchant guild members.”

 

“I’m Baek Seo-u, Merchant Guild Leader of Iseong Merchant Guild. After everything was taken by the Hwangbo Clan, I now only operate a small sawmill that makes wooden furniture.”

 

“I’m Seok O-chil of Palseong Ironworks. I was once called a metallurgy craftsman in Shandong Province, but now I work as a blacksmith making farming tools.”

 

They were all people with stories. The businesses they lost had all gone to the Hwangbo Clan.

 

“The people here are those who are holding out to the end for revenge. There are far more who have already given up and left.”

 

Hao-mun was searching for those who had left. They planned to bring those with determination into the fight as well.

 

“I am Jin Hyeon-pil, who used to run Jinjuk Martial Arts School.”

 

“Don’t tell me the Hwangbo Clan even touched martial arts schools?”

 

“My grandfather was a descendant of the Jin Geuk-il-in School. He stopped the single-person transmission and established a martial arts school, which I was greatly expanding during my generation. The Hwangbo Clan didn’t like that, so they picked a fight claiming we stole the Hwangbo Clan’s martial arts, and eventually forced us to close the school.”

 

In short, it meant they cut off the sprout before it could grow big.

 

“There must be people who know about the martial arts of the Jin Geuk-il-in School.”

 

“The thing is, the Hwangbo Clan’s footwork technique Taejeongbo and the Jin Geuk-il-in School’s Bansanbo have similar aspects. In my judgment, they’re similar enough to be understandable, but the Hwangbo Clan made an issue of it to the very end.”

 

Ja-gang-cheon, who had learned various martial arts, knew that basic martial arts often had many similarities.

 

“Within Shandong Province, they can do whatever they want. The truth wasn’t important from the beginning.”

 

Ja-gang-cheon nodded in agreement.

 

“Do all of you here want to join the fight against the Hwangbo Clan?”

 

“Yes! That’s right!”

 

Starting with Jin Hyeon-pil from Jinjuk Martial Arts School, everyone showed determined expressions.

 

“We’ve been waiting for this day.”

 

“We endured those wretched times for today.”

 

“Good. But let me confirm once more whether you truly understand reality.”

 

Ja-gang-cheon looked at Miho beside him.

 

“Could you tell them about the Hwangbo Clan’s strength?”

 

“I’ll first tell you about the scale of the Hwangbo Clan’s power. Direct bloodline alone numbers about 150, and branch families are around a thousand. All of them, regardless of gender, can be considered to have learned martial arts to a certain level. And the warriors who follow them number five thousand. Five thousand who can hold swords and fight, and about ten thousand others estimated to be working staff who operate the clan.”

 

The numbers that came out were breathtakingly enormous.

 

Dominating a region meant this level of significance.

 

“Even the government office considers the Hwangbo Clan’s power to be at a dangerous level.”

 

When all explanations were finished, Ja-gang-cheon asked those with dark expressions.

 

“Will you still do it? I won’t blame you if you back down here.”

 

Though Ja-gang-cheon gave them a chance, no one gave up.

 

“We knew this from the beginning. Hearing it once more in words won’t change anything.”

 

They knew the Hwangbo Clan better than anyone.

 

“Good. Then I’ll tell you what you need to do. Soon, the Hwangbo Clan will send elite warriors to Deungmyeong Manor. I’ll handle them at Deungmyeong Manor, so please attack the Hwangbo Clan’s most vulnerable spots.”

 

“Will that be helpful?”

 

“It’s enough. Trust me.”

 

They couldn’t be of help in the important battles anyway.

 

Ak-pung-jin and Jin Hyeon-pil were fairly skilled, but if even they were absent, the others would be in too much danger.

 

“Now let’s go steal the Hwangbo Clan’s time.”

 

They finished their conversation and left the guest room.

 

After leaving the inn, they moved to the southern end of Taean.

 

The place they arrived at was a wide crossroads where various carriages came and went. Here stood the main headquarters of Shandong Province’s most famous caravan.

 

It was the Shandong Trade Guild.

 

“Those despicable bastards…”

 

Seeing the signboard and towering flag of the Shandong Trade Guild, Ak-pung-jin trembled with rage.

 

“This is where our Jangpung Caravan used to be. They planted the caravan’s flag on top of our family’s corpses.”

 

This place best showed just how vicious the Hwangbo Clan’s actions were.

 

The Shandong Trade Guild taking position exactly where Jangpung Caravan used to be had great meaning as a warning to others.

 

“Now. Let’s visit them one by one from now on.”

 

Ja-gang-cheon deliberately yielded the lead position.

 

Ak-pung-jin, who drew and gripped his spear, didn’t refuse and walked toward the main gate of the Shandong Trade Guild.

 

The caravan people couldn’t just watch uninvited guests approaching with weapons.

 

“Stop!”

 

“Who are you!”

 

Even the caravan guards inside who heard the gatekeepers’ shouts rushed out to block Ak-pung-jin. But none of them could stop him.

 

“Ak-pung-jin, master of Jangpung Caravan, has come to reclaim what’s mine!”

 

The caravan guards who reacted to the name Ak-pung-jin hastily drew their weapons.

 

But Ak-pung-jin’s spear was faster.

 

Swoosh!

 

Three chests were sliced by his spear tip that cut through the wind.

 

“Argh!”

 

“Aaah!”

 

“It’s an attack!”

 

Screams filled the air and the interior became chaotic.

 

Then, there was someone who moved faster than anyone else.

 

A shadow that took two steps and leaped kicked off the wall and instantly snatched the flag hanging above the caravan’s central pavilion.

 

Then he tore it and threw it to the ground, hanging a different flag he had prepared.

 

It was the flag of Jangpung Caravan with a single spear drawn on it.

 

“What are you doing!”

 

Someone burst into angry shouts seeing the changed flag.

 

It was Hwangbo Cheol, master of the Shandong Trade Guild.

 

The elderly man with white beard covering his chin and nose and reaching down to his belly shouted in a booming voice.

 

“Where do you think this is to cause such trouble! Come down immediately!”

 

“Alright.”

 

As the guild master said, Ja-gang-cheon leaped and landed in the caravan’s courtyard.

 

Of course, he didn’t just come down gently.

 

Crash!

 

An explosive sound erupted from the ground where he landed with internal energy.

—————
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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