Namgoong the Sword Ghost - Chapter 113

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 113. The Sword Ghost’s Wealth-Source Well
“The two of you do make quite the pair.”
Ho Yeon regarded the two Taoist priests with a look of exasperation.
They were Gwang Myeong and Hye Il, each sporting a splint on one arm, wrapped neatly in bandages.
“Ahahaha! That’s what the Eight-Rotation Cooperative Hand is all about!”
“Hehe. Thanks.”
“That wasn’t a compliment.”
Gwang Myeong’s round cheeks flushed as he laughed, while Hye Il scratched the back of his long neck, embarrassed.
Having sustained injuries while facing Jin Huk Cheon, the two had become heroes of the Danli Clan and were receiving lavish treatment.
“My, I could live here forever! Yesterday, a young lady gave me a handkerchief she’d embroidered herself—surely that means she wants to marry me?”
“Fool. It’s an expression of gratitude.”
“Ehehehe, Master. Are you getting jealous of my popularity already?”
Gwang Myeong grinned at Ho Yeon as if making light of the situation.
Then Un Am, who had been sitting on a bed nearby, spoke up.
“I doubt that. I overheard some of the Danli Clan’s elders earlier—they were desperate to introduce their daughters to you.”
“I heard that too. And I heard the Danli Clan Lord sternly warned them not to trouble the benefactor.”
When even Nan Ah, who was changing Un Am’s bandages, chimed in, Gwang Myeong’s face darkened as he looked at Ho Yeon.
“Why did heaven create Gwang Myeong, only to also create Ho Yeon…?”
“Oh, I know that one. Zhou Yu born of heaven, why also Zhuge Liang, right?”
“So I’m Zhou Yu and you’re Zhuge Liang? I don’t like either of them—one died young and the other worked himself to death.”
“Ugh, so I’m forever destined to be second? If only I’d been born thirty years earlier!”
Gwang Myeong spoke with genuine frustration, and Hye Il offered him comfort.
“But Gwang Myeong, at least you’ve earned a splendid title.”
“Ahem! True enough. Listen, Master—from now on, call me the Eight-Rotation Cooperative Hand!”
Gwang Myeong’s mood brightened instantly, and he announced it with glee.
Eight-Rotation Cooperative Hand.
The hand of a Cooperative swordsman that rotates eight times.
It was the title he’d earned when he served as bait to draw Jin Huk Cheon’s attention while using the Cloud Dragon Eight Formations.
“And this one—the Gentle Wind Palm!”
“Gentle Wind Palm? So you’ve modified your Wind Return Palm?”
“Hehe. That’s right.”
When Ho Yeon asked, Hye Il nodded and answered.
“He was truly remarkable. Without Hye Il’s modified technique, I couldn’t have found the gap in the Carnivorous Demonic Palm.”
As Nan Ah spoke, Un Am added wistfully.
“What a shame we didn’t see the full display of the Demon-Subduing Chaotic Phoenix—I dropped out first.”
“My, look at you being modest, Un Am of the Three-Peak Sword Hand.”
Nan Ah smiled brightly and praised Un Am.
Watching this, Ho Yeon spoke with disbelief.
“There you go again—gilding each other’s achievements. You could’ve been slaughtered. The weak should know their place instead of playing hero.”
“Friend, when helping those in need, what does it matter who is weak or strong? We each do what we can.”
“Hye Il is right! And compared to you, we’re weak—but go anywhere else and people would call us masters!”
Hye Il spoke like the Taoist he was, and Gwang Myeong agreed. Then Un Am and Nan Ah added their own words.
“Haha, Seung Byeok Ja was truly something else. He was playing around, but for us facing him, it was terrifying.”
“A true monster. My blade shattered when his power struck it. My apologies to the sword, not yet recovered.”
When Nan Ah recited her own improvisation, Hye Il turned to Ho Yeon with curiosity.
“But how did you break through Jin Huk Cheon’s Guardian Body Protective Qi?”
“Well.”
“Pardon?”
“I broke through it well.”
At Ho Yeon’s dismissive answer, Gwang Myeong flicked Hye Il’s forehead sharply.
Thwack!
“Ow!”
“You fool. Why ask a martial artist about their secret techniques? That’s like asking me to teach you meditation!”
“Oh! That’s what you meant? Friend, I swear I meant no offense!”
Hye Il waved his hands in panic, and Ho Yeon chuckled.
“It’s not really a secret technique.”
“Really?”
“Besides, even if I told you, it’d be useless. You couldn’t pull it off anyway.”
“Tsk, don’t just tell the harsh truth! A master should give his disciples hope!”
“Stop calling me master. It’s getting old.”
“I wasn’t doing it for amusement, was I? Was I?”
Gwang Myeong dragged out his words with an aggrieved expression, and Ho Yeon shook his head firmly as he spoke.
“In any case, all of you—return to your sects now. Surely you’ve been summoned already?”
“Oh, right.”
At Ho Yeon’s words, Hye Il nodded and broke into a grin.
“Hehe, the sect leader himself sent me a letter. Said I did well.”
“What?”
“He said to keep following you around. Said he’d make sure no trouble comes of it.”
“That old catfish is something else.”
Ho Yeon muttered in disbelief, recalling the Taoist priest’s peculiar ways, when Gwang Myeong suddenly threw up his hand.
“Ha! My sect lies in the remote reaches of Qinghai, so news travels slowly! You can’t catch me, can you?”
“You mad runaway priest. Is that something to boast about?”
“Heh, Ho Yeon. I myself departed with formal permission from my sect. Let us see this through together to the end.”
Clink.
Un Am grasped the Purple Depths Holy Sword beside the bed as he spoke, and Nan Ah followed with a serene smile.
“The Buddha only points the way. The traveler walks alone. This is the teaching from our sect.”
The Buddha only points the way.
The Buddha merely shows the path.
The traveler walks alone.
Those who walk the road walk by themselves alone.
“What nonsense is that? Has your Amipa Sect caught some kind of terminal illness?”
“Hehe, in short, it means to do as you please.”
“……Tsk.”
At Nan Ah’s matter-of-fact reply, Ho Yeon clicked his tongue.
He’d tried to shake them off here, but it seemed they were determined to follow him all the way home.
“Don’t worry, friend. I’ll keep my promise. I’ll go to the Namgung Clan and tell them I’m your companion. And I’ll beg for a meal!”
“Don’t you dare!”
Squeak!
As Ho Yeon spent time at the Samdo Ilhwa’s entrance hall, paying his respects—
The door opened and Danri Sanwol poked his head through.
“Master Ho Yeon. The clan leader requests your presence.”
* * *
“First, I offer thanks on behalf of all members of the Danli Clan.”
Tap.
Danri Hwan, the clan leader of the Danli Clan, offered a formal fist salute and expressed his gratitude to Ho Yeon.
Ho Yeon returned the salute and offered his own bow of courtesy.
“Surely this cannot be my achievement alone. Without the brilliant formations of the Danli Clan, it would have been impossible.”
“Nonsense. The Nine-Palace Bamboo Striking Formation is formidable, but it could not contain Seung Byeok Ja alone. Without you, the losses to my clan would have been astronomical.”
Danri Hwan continued, his eyes full of deep appreciation and gratitude.
“This debt will be repaid at the clan level. Not in words alone—tomorrow, our forces will march toward Qingyang.”
“……Qingyang.”
“We will lend our strength to the battle against the Daoists. Our elite troops, including the Danru Regiment, the Biru Army, the Bijeon Guard, the Yeonyeong Unit, and the Myosan Brigade, will be of service.”
“Are you certain you can spare such forces? Surely the chaos in Buyang has not yet been settled?”
At Ho Yeon’s question, Danri Hwan smiled and opened his mouth.
“The pursuit of the remaining Geum Su Chae forces that fled to Gyeongseok Mountain can be handled sufficiently by the rest of our troops. Un Bu Sang Soo is dead, and enemies with broken momentum are no longer sharp.”
“Then I am grateful to accept your support.”
Ho Yeon nodded.
With those enemies aiming at his back now eliminated, it was time to hunt the five wolves rising from Jiangxi Province.
The Danli Clan, being counted among the top five major powers in Anhui, would prove invaluable.
‘Formations alone, if used well, can turn the tide of battle.’
As Ho Yeon considered the Danli Clan’s usefulness, Danri Hwan retrieved a bundle from beneath the table and handed it over.
“And take this. Items recovered from Jin Huk Cheon’s body.”
“This is…….”
Rustle. Rustle.
Ho Yeon unwrapped the bundle.
Inside lay the Moonlit Crimson Dagger and two leather-bound books.
Both were bound in leather, and one in particular—aged and worn—radiated an ominous aura.
Thud.
“Bound in human skin.”
“That accursed demonic art manual is called the Scorching Black Devouring Demonic Art. The life work of Jin Huk Cheon, master of the Carnivorous Demonic Palm.”
“Have you read it?”
“Not at all. Some demonic manuals can cause one’s Qi to run wild simply from reading them, leading to deviation. I’d rather not risk it.”
Danri Hwan continued, his expression wary as he gazed upon the Scorching Black Devouring Demonic Art manual.
“Frankly, I’d like to send it to Shaolin Temple or destroy it outright. But since it’s your spoils of war, I left it untouched.”
“Then I’ll destroy it myself.”
―Surely you’re not thinking of actually studying it, are you, boy?
The Cheonrae Geom sensed the curiosity stirring in Ho Yeon’s heart and spoke with concern.
Ho Yeon answered him.
‘Am I mad? I’m already struggling with the Life-Death Threshold. Why would I raise the difficulty on myself?’
Demonic arts were practices that shattered the body’s harmony to build strength rapidly, but they came with numerous side effects.
Demonic Qi could invade the crown of the head, and a single mistake would render one insane, or fundamentally warp one’s character.
Moreover, turbid Qi accumulated in the conception and governing vessels, making the Life-Death Threshold all the more intractable—the higher one’s realm, the more disadvantaged a demonic cultivator became.
Without these drawbacks, the Martial World would have fallen into the hands of the Cheonma Sinjyo long ago.
‘Still, if there are any interesting formulas worth extracting, I could experiment with them.’
―Pfu-hahah! Such old habits die hard, don’t they, boy?
―You fool! Do you want to die prematurely?!
The Heukya Tae Geom laughed as if Ho Yeon’s attitude was all too familiar, while the Cheonrae Geom shrieked in alarm.
Ignoring their voices, Ho Yeon examined the remaining texts.
It was a footwork manual inscribed with “Precious Flower Step-by-Step,” and leafing through it briefly, he sensed the refined quality of a superior Daoist stepping art.
“The Bohwa Sect perished long ago, so there’s no one who would object to you using their techniques.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it. I was simply returning what belonged to its rightful owner.”
Danri Hwan smiled.
For him, it had been the obvious choice.
The Scorching Black Devouring Demonic Art was so vicious that merely practicing it would mark one as a criminal in the Martial World—clearly beyond consideration.
But the Precious Flower Step-by-Step, being fundamentally a Daoist art, was something the Danli Clan could well have coveted.
Indeed, several of the clan’s elders had even proposed incorporating it into the Danli Clan’s official martial repertoire.
‘But that mustn’t happen. I cannot afford the folly of Small Gain, Great Loss.’
Though the Precious Flower Step-by-Step was a superior stepping art, it was not worth the price of making an enemy of a young prodigy who would surely become a Future Powerhouse of Tenth Rank.
Zing! Whirrr!
As Ho Yeon picked up the Moonlit Crimson Dagger last, the blade trembled with its scarlet gleam and hummed joyfully, as if greeting an old friend.
Danri Hwan, watching this, spoke to Ho Yeon.
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
“The Danli Clan’s treasures were used to destroy the wicked. The spirits of our clansmen who fell in this battle will find peace.”
……
Ho Yeon fell silent at Danri Hwan’s words.
However much of a victory it was, the cost had not been negligible.
Many martial artists killed by Jin Huk Cheon and countless Danli Clan members who perished on the Mongseong Plain had fallen.
Beyond these casualties, the wages paid to mercenaries, the costs of setting up formations and rebuilding the clan compound—the Danli Clan would clearly struggle for some time.
Whirrr! Whirrr!
Then, through the Sword-Heart Resonance, the Moonlit Crimson Dagger transmitted its will to Ho Yeon.
‘What? You want me to tell him that?’
Zing!
‘Tsk. Fine. I can’t consume it anyway. It’d be better used to strengthen the foundation.’
At the earnest will of the Moonlit Crimson Dagger, Ho Yeon smacked his lips.
In truth, he had known this secret since he first laid hands on it at the Baekga Geom-hoe.
He had originally planned to steal it when the chance came, but fate works in mysterious ways—he had formed a bond with the Danli Clan instead.
Moreover, with his windfall from selling tea leaves from Seo Ok’s estate, he no longer needed to eye the Danli Clan’s treasures.
“Now that I think of it, Jin Huk Cheon said something peculiar.”
“Hmm? What do you mean?”
“The Danli Clan was royal lineage during the Tang and Song dynasties, correct?”
At Ho Yeon’s sudden question, Danri Hwan nodded and replied.
“Well, that’s true enough.”
Though not a mighty dynasty that held dominion over all Zhongyuan, the Danli Clan was indeed descended from a royal house that had ruled a region, much like the Moyong Clan.
In fact, the Heuk O Dan’s exceptional information-gathering abilities and their mastery of formations owed much to their past as a royal house.
As one could see from the Eastern Treasury of the current Silver clan, a superior intelligence network was an essential attribute of any dynasty.
And to properly manipulate formations required accompanying civil engineering works—something beyond the capacity of a mere clan.
“Jin Huk Cheon spoke of the Danli Clan with contempt, calling you all foolish descendants of a blind kingdom sitting upon a hidden treasure.”
……What?
“What was it I said again? That they were fools who couldn’t quench their thirst even sitting atop a Wealth-Source Well?”
As Ho Yeon spoke with a knowing smile, Danri Hwan murmured vacantly.
“A Wealth-Source Well? A treasure well? Blind fools of a royal house, sitting on a fortune without seeing it…… descendants?!”
Danri Hwan’s eyes snapped wide open.
His shock gave way to urgency as he turned to Ho Yeon.
“I, the Namgung heir. We’ll finish this story later. Something urgent just occurred to me.”
“Of course.”
Tap-tap! Tap-tap-tap!
Danri Hwan hurried from the room, and Ho Yeon, watching his retreating figure, tossed the Moonlit Crimson Dagger into the air and caught it.
Whish! Thunk!
“Got it?”
Zing!
The Moonlit Crimson Dagger hummed its gratitude, and Ho Yeon chuckled softly, murmuring to himself.
“Well, I’ve spelled it out for you—if you can’t find the well where you were unearthed, you’re hopeless.”
Ho Yeon shrugged once and sauntered leisurely out of the hall.

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