Namgung Heavenly Demon - Chapter 20

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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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Chapter 20

Despite the vibrant night view of Hefei spread outside the window, a blade-like killing intent swirled inside the room.

The Black Wind Division members glared at the intruder while gripping their sword hilts tightly.

All the members were peak-level masters, and Akmugyeol who led them was a skilled expert who had reached the mature transcendent realm.

It was more than enough force to deal with a mere youngster who had just passed his coming of age.

However, instead of ordering an attack, Akmugyeol commanded Budan-ju who stood behind him.

“Everyone, withdraw.”

“…Master!”

Budan-ju was shocked.

What was the reason they had come all the way to Hefei in the first place?

It was to make the Sword Demon Namgung Cheon pay the price for his arrogant provocation – the one who had arbitrarily destroyed the Bloodsword Sect belonging to the Sable Alliance and shaken the order of the Anhui Sects.

But now, with that very person right before their eyes, he was telling them to withdraw.

It was beyond common sense.

“We don’t know what kind of sinister scheme that bastard might be plotting!”

“Don’t make me say it twice.”

Akmugyeol’s voice was resolute.

He knew.

That his subordinates’ thinking wasn’t wrong.

However.

‘…He wasn’t shaken at all by my energy.’

As soon as Namgung Cheon appeared, Akmugyeol had secretly unleashed a blade-like energy directed only at him.

A sharp energy wave that the other subordinates couldn’t detect at all, aimed solely at Namgung Cheon.

It was an energy that would make even those who had just broken through the transcendent realm’s barrier weak in the knees, but Namgung Cheon didn’t waver even an inch.

‘That means…’

At the very least, he was equal to himself, or perhaps even superior.

Therefore, even if a fight broke out, his subordinates would obviously be of little help.

Budan-ju realized he couldn’t bend his master’s resolute will, hesitated for a moment, then seemed to make up his mind and bowed.

“…I accept your command.”

He signaled to the Black Wind Division members with his eyes.

Once all the Black Wind Division members had left, Akmugyeol spoke.

“I’ll acknowledge your boldness. Now state your business.”

“Wasn’t your side the one with business first? I heard you were looking for me.”

Namgung Cheon replied leisurely.

“It’s true that I was looking for you.”

Akmugyeol readily admitted it.

“I was curious about the reason you swung your sword so recklessly. Whether it was the Namgung Clan’s will, or just a youngster’s puppy-like bravado.”

“Did you find your answer?”

“I’m in the process of finding it.”

Akmugyeol looked at Namgung Cheon for a moment, then asked directly.

“I ask you. Are your actions the will of the Namgung Clan?”

At that question, Namgung Cheon laughed briefly.

“If the clan had moved directly, do you think you’d be able to leisurely drink tea like this?”

“…”

After a moment of silence, Akmugyeol slowly nodded his head.

‘I see. So it’s a personal matter.’

But even so, he couldn’t do anything to Namgung Cheon.

No matter how much one sect under the Sable Alliance had fallen, if he harmed Namgung Cheon.

‘The Namgung Clan, no… he might move.’

The Sword Emperor, Namgung Mugang.

Akmugyeol recalled the contents of the report.

The timing of the Sword Emperor’s return after years of seclusion strangely coincided with when his son Namgung Cheon revealed himself to the martial world.

Could it really be a coincidence?

‘Touching Namgung Cheon might be what makes the Sword Emperor step forward.’

This was precisely the worst-case scenario the strategist had repeatedly warned about.

The Sword Emperor, called the world’s greatest swordsman.

It meant making an enemy of that extraordinary existence.

Before departure, the Alliance’s strategist had given a firm order.

Only confirm the truth, and absolutely do not start a conflict first.

It was a strict command not to give the Namgung Clan, or more precisely the Sword Emperor, any excuse to find fault.

And the truth he had confirmed after coming here wasn’t much different from the rumors he’d heard.

‘The third young master of the Namgung Clan, Namgung Cheon, held formal martial duels, and the Bloodsword Sect that lost its leader self-destructed.’

Self-destruction.

Nowhere in these words was there justification to pressure the Namgung Clan.

The moment Akmugyeol’s mental calculations ended, Namgung Cheon spoke.

“If you’ve gotten your answer, now it’s time to answer my question.”

Namgung Cheon got straight to the point.

“You came because the tribute payments stopped, right?”

Akmugyeol nodded and asked.

“So?”

Namgung Cheon answered immediately.

“I’ve set up new ones. They’re called the Gold Money House.”

“…What are you thinking?”

Wariness crept into Akmugyeol’s voice.

At that question, Namgung Cheon looked at Akmugyeol for a moment.

Then he raised one corner of his mouth and answered.

“Are my thoughts important to you?”

“…”

Akmugyeol’s brow twitched.

Namgung Cheon continued speaking.

“Isn’t it enough for you to receive what was promised? Trying to know more than that is overstepping your authority.”

At the word “overstepping,” Akmugyeol’s eyes grew coldly sunken.

That youngster was now insulting his and the Sable Alliance’s authority.

Though anger surged, he didn’t move rashly.

Instead, he mulled over the words Namgung Cheon had thrown at him again.

‘What was promised.’

He was referring to the tribute money.

‘Whatever the process, if the Gold Money House starts paying tribute again, Bonryeon gains practical benefits.’

Making an enemy of Namgung Cheon here and starting a fight would be purely an emotional response with neither practical benefit nor justification.

That was the very behavior the strategist had been most wary of.

‘Though he said it was a personal matter, he’s still Namgung blood.’

If he moved emotionally here and harmed Namgung Cheon, Namgung Mugang would move in some way.

Moreover, since Namgung Cheon had already prepared a sect to replace them, he had no choice.

“…It sounds good.”

After a long silence, Akmugyeol spoke.

He didn’t back down meekly.

“However, how can I trust it? There’s no way to know whether these Gold Money House people we’ve never heard of will properly pay tribute, or whether you’ll intercept everything from behind. All we get are uncertain promises, and if things go wrong, won’t the Sable Alliance’s authority actually decline?”

It was a reasonable objection.

But a smile still hung on Namgung Cheon’s lips.

But a smile still lingered on Namgung Cheon’s lips.

“Authority…”

He gazed out the window for a moment, then turned his attention back to Akmugyeol.

“When that situation arises, I’ll tell you a way to actually establish your authority instead.”

“…?”

“If the Gold Money House refuses to pay tribute or if the amount doesn’t satisfy you, feel free to cut off their heads anytime.”

Akmugyeol doubted his own ears.

“You’re telling us to kill what you’ve established?”

“That’s right. And if that happens, wouldn’t it serve as an example? The Sable Alliance’s authority would rise.”

Namgung Cheon continued in an indifferent voice.

“If that happens, I’ll find you another one to pay tribute. How about it? Does it still seem like the Sable Alliance’s authority has been diminished?”

Akmugyeol was left speechless.

The Orthodox Faction’s Cheoncheon, the Namgung Clan.

And from the mouth of such a Namgung Clan’s young master, tribute money and the Sable Alliance’s authority were being casually discussed.

A completely incomprehensible situation.

‘What exactly is this bastard…’

Akmugyeol mobilized all his judgment to reassess the man before him.

The contents of the report had been true.

At an age barely past twenty, he had reached the pinnacle realm and brought all of Hefei’s strong warriors to their knees.

That fact alone was more than enough to call him a monster.

However.

‘…There’s something that can’t be explained by martial prowess alone.’

Those unfathomable eyes and that overwhelming presence as if looking down upon the world.

The images of countless strong warriors he had encountered flashed through his mind.

There had been some geniuses who achieved overwhelming martial prowess at a young age.

Most of them focused only on their swords.

The pinnacle realm was originally a level that could only be reached by doing so.

But Namgung Cheon was different.

He wasn’t just equipped with martial power, but was trying to move everything around him, including himself, according to his will.

A temperament closer to a monarch rather than a martial artist.

Suddenly, the image of one person came to Akmugyeol’s mind.

‘The Young Alliance Leader…’

The Young Alliance Leader, called the future of the Alliance, had also entered the pinnacle realm at a young age.

However, the Young Alliance Leader that Akmugyeol remembered was closer to a sharply honed blade.

An arrogance that would break rather than bend.

It was the typical appearance shown by geniuses of that age.

He didn’t feel such arrogance from Namgung Cheon.

Rather, he felt an absolute composure as if he didn’t even need to bend or break.

An attitude as if everything in the world was in the palm of his hand.

‘It’s a temperament I never saw in the Young Alliance Leader.’

After a long silence, Akmugyeol finally had to admit.

That he was now facing an incomprehensible existence.

And that he could never win in this conversation.

He lifted his teacup.

Akmugyeol’s tense momentum softened considerably.

“…I’ll accept that proposal.”

“Then the conversation is over.”

As soon as those words ended, Namgung Cheon rose from his seat.

Namgung Cheon quickly moving away.

Akmugyeol threw one last question at his retreating figure.

“…What do you gain from this affair?”

The tribute money goes to the Sable Alliance, and the hegemony of Anhui Sects naturally falls to the Gold Money House that pays tribute to the Sable Alliance.

Then Namgung Cheon, who created this entire situation.

What exactly does he gain?

For Akmugyeol, this was something he absolutely had to confirm.

He needed to know the opponent’s real purpose to prepare for what comes next.

Namgung Cheon, who had stopped walking, spoke quietly without turning around.

“You ask useless things until the very end.”

“…”

Akmugyeol’s face hardened momentarily at the dismissal.

Namgung Cheon didn’t care about his reaction and started walking again.

Eventually stopping in front of the door, he opened his mouth without turning around.

“Because I decided it would be so, it became so.”

With those words, Namgung Cheon left the room.

“…”

Left alone in the room, Akmugyeol couldn’t move from his spot for a while.

He pondered the last words Namgung Cheon had left.

‘Because he decided it would be so, it became so…’

An incomprehensible answer.

Yet it was a clearer answer than any other.

It was a simple statement that he did so because his will was such.

However.

‘If one can move everything according to their will, then that’s…’

Then, Budan-ju’s voice was heard from outside the door.

“May I enter?”

“…Come in.”

Budan-ju, who carefully entered, saw Akmugyeol alone and cautiously asked.

“The situation is…”

“Suspend all investigations.”

Akmugyeol said while looking out the window.

“Tomorrow morning, we return to Bonryeon.”

“But the orders given by the Military Strategist…”

Bewilderment appeared on Budan-ju’s face.

Returning without completing the investigation was a clear mission failure.

It was something that had never happened to the Black Wind Division before.

“The situation has changed.”

Akmugyeol answered briefly.

“I will submit the report personally.”

Budan-ju didn’t ask further and bowed his head.

The Division Leader’s decision must have had its reasons.

Eventually, after Budan-ju quietly withdrew and he was alone again, Akmugyeol picked up a brush.

It was to send a letter to the Alliance’s Military Strategist.

He didn’t write a single line about the conflicts among the Anhui Sects or about the new tribute payer called the Gold Money House.

‘Such things can be reported after returning. For now…’

He first wrote three characters in the letter.

Namgung Cheon .

And next to that name, he added his conclusion about Namgung Cheon.

.

The Heaven of Namgung.

The Military Strategist would understand everything from just these two lines.

The emergence of a natural disaster called Namgung Cheon.

And that he must be watched as the highest priority.

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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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