Return of the God of War - Chapter 45

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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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Episode 45. A Promise Between Us
At last, the day of Sadocheon’s grand banquet had arrived.
As Bu Yeon and Bu Young-seol stepped into Jang Hyeon-jeon, the main hall, their jaws fell open.
Though the formal proceedings had not yet begun, the venue teemed with countless dignitaries.
And these were no ordinary guests.
“Sister, that man over there—isn’t he the Flying Swallow Tiger, Master Gal Jeon-su?”
“Indeed. It seems the Azure Heaven Guest and the Ghost Voice User are also present… Wait. That elderly gentleman—isn’t that Gok Ryang?”
Gok Ryang, the foremost among wanderers.
Master of the Lang Ye Moon, the most prominent righteous sect in the Central Plains, and revered as the spiritual pillar of all wandering martial artists.
Gossips claimed that if Gok Ryang encountered even the slightest opportunity, he could cross the threshold and take his place among the Heavenly Martial Eleven Seats.
But such talk came only from those ignorant of the true masters of the Heavenly realm.
Those who had experienced how insurmountable the barrier truly was would never speak such hasty words.
And Gok Ryang himself knew this truth better than anyone.
Which was precisely why, rather than remaining in the training grounds to cultivate, he attended banquets like this one, maintaining his presence and focusing on the currents of power.
It promised greater benefit to his sect.
In any case.
To Bu Yeon and Bu Young-seol, everyone gathered here—Gok Ryang foremost among them—were figures too formidable even to exchange words with.
“This is quite an intimidating venue.”
“Indeed it is.”
Though the two of them led a merchant house of some renown in the nearby regions.
Such credentials alone fell considerably short for entering this hall.
Worse still, nearly everyone present was a martial artist of considerable standing.
For two ordinary merchants, the Qi radiating from such warriors appeared utterly unremarkable.
As a result, the hall’s attention naturally turned toward Bu Yeon and Bu Young-seol as curiosities.
That was when it happened.
A young man, overdressed in garish ornaments, drifted toward Bu Young-seol with casual familiarity.
“We haven’t met before, have we? I am Chi Yeon-ho, young master of the Ak Ju Chi Family. Might you be a distinguished guest from some martial sect?”
Bu Young-seol hesitated briefly before offering a respectful bow.
“I am Bu Young-seol, chief financial officer of the Hong Ryeon merchant house, based in Gwang Dong. This is my younger brother and manager, Bu Yeon.”
The Ak Ju Chi Family was rising as a new power among the gentry of northern Ho Nam.
The transformation of their unremarkable house into one of Sadocheon’s hundred privileged families owed much to the current patriarch’s shrewd administration.
Yet common wisdom held that his focus on external affairs had caused him to fail entirely at raising his children.
As if on cue.
The moment Chi Yeon-ho confirmed that his interlocutor ranked far below him, his eyes hardened.
“Hmm, this is hardly a place for mere merchants. Your business acumen must be quite remarkable to gain entry here.”
The term he used—lowering and informal—was distinctly disrespectful to a woman he’d only just met.
Beneath it lay unmistakable contempt.
And the way his gaze raked up and down her frame made his intentions transparently obvious.
“As it happens, our family has been seeking merchant partners to expand our influence. What say you, madam? Shall we step outside for some air and discuss business opportunities?”
“Well, I…”
Bu Young-seol wanted to refuse outright, yet hesitated, fearing any slight might harm the house.
Unable to bear it, her brother Bu Yeon stepped forward.
He gently caught Bu Young-seol’s wrist and drew her back, his voice steady.
“My apologies, Master Chi Yeon-ho. We have a prior engagement and are waiting for someone. I’m afraid we cannot leave. I hope you understand.”
“What?”
Chi Yeon-ho’s eyebrows shot upward.
In truth.
Any person with even a modicum of sense would have paused to consider.
How could a nameless merchant gain a seat at this banquet, where the foremost stars of Qi had gathered?
Surely one should have inferred what powerful backing stood behind them.
But unfortunately.
Chi Yeon-ho lacked even such basic discernment.
“You ignorant wretches! Do you know who I am? A prior engagement? Very well. With what insignificant dog did you make this agreement? I’ll see him thoroughly humiliated. Bring him here at once!”
As Chi Yeon-ho delivered his thinly veiled threat, Bu Yeon’s face turned to stone.
Then it came.
A pleasant young man’s voice rang out from behind them.
“With me. We have a promise.”
Chi Yeon-ho’s head snapped around.
There stood a refined nobleman in an elegant long robe of harmonious black and white.
For a moment, Chi Yeon-ho was overwhelmed by the stranger’s presence—but then he sensed the man’s Qi and found it equally unremarkable, prompting a smirk to cross his lips.
To Chi Yeon-ho’s eye, this fellow was unmistakably some provincial nobleman’s spoiled, idle son with a bit of family money to his name.
“So the saying ‘birds of a feather flock together’ holds true after all. And which backwater clan did you crawl out from?”
In the same breath, Chi Yeon-ho released a subtle wave of pressure, bearing down on the young nobleman Muk Yeo-jin.
At this, Muk Yeo-jin clicked his tongue silently to himself.
How thoroughly indulged must this fool be by his family to attempt such arrogance in a place like this?
It seemed clear that he needed to remind this fellow precisely where he was standing—Sadocheon.
With a pleasant smile blooming across his face, Muk Yeo-jin finally spoke.
“A clan, you say? Well then. I suppose you could call me the youngest son of the Gwang Seo Muk Family patriarch.”
And in that same instant.
The Qi that had been contained within Muk Yeo-jin’s body erupted outward in a torrent.
Boom—crash—crash—crash!!
A Qi Wave like an ocean itself crashed down upon Chi Yeon-ho.
“Gasp!”
Unable to withstand such a force, Chi Yeon-ho’s face drained of color in an instant.
The onlookers who had been watching as if at some amusing spectacle were equally shaken.
Even some of the genuine masters present, including Gok Ryang, felt their eyes widen at Muk Yeo-jin’s formidable presence.
Gwang Seo Muk Family?
An unfamiliar name.
And no wonder.
For decades now, that place had been called by another name entirely—Sadocheon—rather than Gwang Seo Muk Family.
One by one, those present began to grasp the truth, their eyes widening in recognition.
In other words, the haughty young man radiating such tremendous power was the youngest son of the Sadocheon Master.
“So—that’s Sonachal!”
Someone cried out.
Sonachal Muk Yeo-jin.
They had all heard rumors about him before.
But then again, rumors have a tendency to become inflated, do they not?
The general consensus among the assembled masters had been that the reality would pale beside what they’d heard.
Yet what was this?
The formidable power radiating from him was far beyond that of a mere Late Stage Martial Expert.
‘If anything, the rumors undersold him.’
‘This is a genuine monster……’
In that moment, Chi Yeon-ho—who seemed unable to withstand Muk Yeo-jin’s pressure any longer—began to inch his hand slowly toward the Sword Sheath fastened at his waist.
That was the moment.
“You fool!!”
The shout that erupted from one side of the banquet hall came from Chi Byeong-so, patriarch of the Ak Ju Chi Family and Chi Yeon-ho’s father.
All eyes turned toward him in shock.
Most everyone present had clearly seen Chi Yeon-ho overstep first.
No matter how angry Chi Byeong-so might be, there was nothing to gain from stepping into this situation.
Chi Byeong-so’s own kinsmen grabbed at his robe, pleading silently for restraint.
Yet despite their efforts, Chi Byeong-so only unleashed his fury more fully.
“How dare you! You shameless wretch!”
With a curse, Chi Byeong-so’s body launched forward.
And shockingly, his heavy fist found its mark—squarely in the face of his own son, Chi Yeon-ho.
Crack!
“Ugh! F—Father?”
“Silence, you fool! Shame upon our house! How did I raise you to be this way!”
Thump-thump-thump.
Under the merciless beating of his father’s fists, Chi Yeon-ho curled into a ball on the floor.
To an observer unaware of the truth, this would appear to be a stern father correcting his son’s misconduct.
But in reality, Chi Byeong-so was fighting for his son’s life with everything he had.
Even as he continued to pound his son relentlessly, he cast a furtive glance toward Muk Yeo-jin.
‘……He was going to kill him.’
There was no doubt.
The killing intent had been so overwhelming that even the hair on his body had stood on end.
Had his son drawn even slightly from that Sword Sheath, his neck would have been severed in an instant.
Under the relentless barrage of blows that continued unabated, Chi Yeon-ho lost consciousness and collapsed.
As Chi Byeong-so gazed upon his son’s limp form with a troubled expression, Muk Yeo-jin’s voice reached his ears.
“You are a good father, patriarch.”
Though the words were sincere, given the circumstances, they sounded only like mockery to Chi Byeong-so.
Yet Chi Byeong-so, a master of shrewd worldly wisdom, bowed to Muk Yeo-jin without the slightest shift in expression.
“I am grateful for your consideration, Master Yeo-jin.”
He then offered his apologies to Bu Yeon and Bu Young-seol before hurrying his son out of Jang Hyeon-jeon.
With the intruder gone, Muk Yeo-jin could at last exchange proper greetings with Bu Yeon.
“It has been too long, Overseer. I’m glad to see you looking well.”
“The Merchant Lord seems unchanged as always, which is fortunate—though I worry we may be imposing on you too greatly…”
“Please, let us not speak of such formalities between us. The Finance Director’s complexion has improved markedly as well.”
Through Bu Yeon’s letter, Muk Yeo-jin had already heard that Bu Young-seol was helping with the merchant house’s affairs.
She had filled out since their first meeting at the Cho Song Pavilion’s secret chamber, and her color had returned.
Her natural beauty now shone through—which likely explained why someone like Chi Yeon-ho had tried to approach her.
“This is all thanks to the Merchant Lord. I am grateful once more, Merchant Lord.”
Muk Yeo-jin answered with a smile.
“Who are these young people?”
The voice belonged to Pi Yang-cheon.
“You have arrived, Master.”
The word “master” startled the Bu siblings.
They naturally knew that Pi Yang-cheon was Muk Yeo-jin’s master.
But compared to what came next from Muk Yeo-jin’s lips, their surprise was nothing.
“Allow me to introduce my closest friend and his sister.”
Both of them—especially Bu Yeon—nearly gasped aloud.
To be called a closest friend at such a formal gathering?
The surge of emotion inside him made his eyes burn with tears.
Pi Yang-cheon laughed softly at those words.
“I see. If my disciple counts you as his closest friend, then we are as close as brothers. I look forward to knowing you both well.”
When Pi Yang-cheon extended his hand, Bu Yeon hurriedly wiped his palm on his trouser leg before grasping it eagerly.
“The honor is all mine, sir!”
Many eyes in the hall watched the exchange.
After this, none at the gathering would dare look down upon Bu Yeon and Bu Young-seol again.
Muk Yeo-jin sent a subtle message through Distant Voice Transmission to Pi Yang-cheon.
『Thank you, Master.』
Pi Yang-cheon waved his hand dismissively.
A moment passed.
The booming voice of a martial artist stationed at the entrance of Jang Hyeon-jeon rang through the hall.
“The Sword Palace Lord is entering!”

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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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