The Evil Martial God Chronicles - Chapter 16

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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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Legend of the Evil Martial God

Chapter 16

 

 

 

Subordinates could always be gathered again.

He had no need for traitors.

Above all, gold would never betray him.

So what he should choose was already decided.

The subordinates seemed greatly disappointed by Hwanggeum Man’s behavior of preciously clutching gold to his chest instead of them.

Even after that, Jeok Wigang continued throwing treasure toward Hwanggeum Man’s subordinates, but Hwanggeum Man snatched it all up with incredibly fast movements.

 

“Do you think I’d give up even a single piece, even if I die!”

 

He had meant to say “Do you think I’d let things go your way?” but his true feelings came out without him realizing it.

The subordinates who heard Hwanggeum Man’s words were greatly disappointed.

To think he would protect gold instead of them, even at the cost of his life.

The subordinates lost all desire to work for such a Gate Master.

They didn’t even feel like risking their lives.

Rather, they found themselves wanting to serve Jeok Wigang, who was trying so hard to share treasure with them.

Unaware of his subordinates’ situation, Hwanggeum Man’s mind was entirely focused on the treasure Jeok Wigang was throwing.

 

“You damn bastard! Take off that damn Evil Spirit Mask and let’s talk like men!”

“I don’t want to. Did you ever listen to what people had to say?”

“Those bastards didn’t pay back my money! There was no reason to listen to them!”

“That’s because you charged them ridiculous interest rates.”

“The world follows the law of the jungle. Those who got fooled are at fault!”

“Really? Then you’re also at fault for giving me your vault.”

“Th-that’s…”

 

Jeok Wigang took off the backpack he was carrying and pulled something out.

 

“What do you think this is?”

 

Hwanggeum Man instinctively knew that was a promissory note.

 

“You, it was you! The one who attacked the branch office!”

“That’s right. What should I do with this promissory note?”

“G-give it to me!”

 

To Hwanggeum Man, the promissory note wasn’t just paper.

It was a future asset.

 

“What should I do with this?”

“S-surely you’re not thinking of burning it?”

“No. I need this to return the money these people were unfairly extorted of. I absolutely can’t burn it.”

“What?”

 

Hwanggeum Man was shocked.

Jeok Wigang casually threw more treasure from inside the vault.

 

Whoosh-.

Clatter-.

 

Hwanggeum Man quickly snatched it up again.

His eyes were bloodshot red.

They were so red that if he cried, it seemed like tears of blood would flow.

 

“Let your subordinates have some too. There’s plenty here.”

“Shut up! My subordinates don’t want such things.”

“Really? Well, I guess there’s no need to throw anymore then.”

“What?”

 

When Hwanggeum Man turned around, it was empty.

Not a single one of his many subordinates could be seen.

 

“Wh-what?”

“What do you mean what. They were all disappointed in you and left.”

“Th-that’s impossible…”

 

He made a dumbfounded expression, then quickly changed it again.

 

“Subordinates can always be gathered again.”

 

Then he glared at Jeok Wigang.

 

“You should have made sure my subordinates didn’t disappear.”

“What?”

“Now when I attack you and gold flies around inside, there’s no one to take my treasure, so I can attack without worry.”

 

It was absurd.

Was that the reason he had been hesitating until now?

Jeok Wigang picked up some gold and shook it.

 

“Even like this?”

“Even if gold breaks, it’s still gold.”

 

Whoosh-.

 

Hwanggeum Man charged forward with eyes full of killing intent.

 

Whooom whooom whooom-.

 

A fist filled with golden Gang Qi swung toward Jeok Wigang.

 

Crash-.

Clang-.

 

The sound of pottery breaking could be heard.

But it didn’t reach Hwanggeum Man’s ears.

All he needed was gold, receipts, and promissory notes.

 

Kwakwakwang-.

 

Hwanggeum Man’s fierce attacks unfolded in succession.

His level, obsessed only with money, was surprisingly at the Transformation Realm Third Star.

Unlike his appearance that suggested he couldn’t do martial arts at all, he was quite a master.

But even strong martial arts are useless if they can’t hit the opponent.

No matter how much Hwanggeum Man attacked, he couldn’t hit Jeok Wigang.

 

“Huff huff!”

 

Moreover, he was already exhausted because he had used all his strength to protect the gold that Jeok Wigang was throwing.

Tears came to his eyes from the injustice of it all.

How did he end up meeting that damned evil bastard.

In Hwanggeum Man’s sight, he could see gold scattered here and there.

Seeing his poor babies rolling around on the floor everywhere made his heart ache.

Without thinking, he tried to pick up the gold on the floor with his hand.

 

Whoong-.

 

As the wind blew, all the gold on the floor moved to one place at once.

When he looked up, gold was being neatly stacked behind Jeok Wigang’s back.

 

“I told you it’s mine, so why are you trying to touch it.”

“Wh-why is that yours! You bastard!”

 

Hwanggeum Man, having lost his reason, charged forward.

 

Jjeok-.

 

 

A fist was driven into the abdomen of Hwanggeum Man who had charged forward frantically.

 

“Keuk!”

 

Kudangtangtang-.

 

“Keoheuk! Keuk! Keuk!”

 

Hwanggeum Man kept trying to breathe as if he couldn’t catch his breath.

Even while suffering, he stubbornly charged forward.

 

“Give me back my money!”

“I told you it’s not your money.”

“Aaaaah! Fucking bastard! It’s my money!”

 

Bwoong- Bungbung-.

 

Hwanggeum Man’s fists, filled with rage, wildly swept past Jeok Wigang.

It was impressive.

That single-minded determination to protect his treasure without yielding to pain.

This didn’t seem like a problem that could be solved by beating him up.

Ordinary people would hesitate when they felt pain, but Hwanggeum Man had no such reaction.

 

Jjeok-.

 

“Keuheuk!”

 

Even with pain that would have knocked out anyone else, Hwanggeum Man stubbornly got up.

Jeok Wigang’s gaze turned to the vault.

Most of the money in there probably wasn’t earned through legitimate means.

For now, let me capture this guy, return all the money to the victims, and then think about it again.

 

Jjeok-.

 

“Keuk!”

 

Thud-.

 

Jeok Wigang shook his head as he looked at Hwanggeum Man who had fainted while foaming at the mouth.

 

 

 

A few days later.

Hwanggeum Man came to his senses.

 

Bolt-.

 

As soon as he regained consciousness, he bolted upright and looked around.

Fortunately, it was his room.

Was it a dream?

He sighed in relief and slowly got up from his spot.

Then he turned his gaze toward the vault.

Hwanggeum Man’s hands and feet began to tremble.

 

“It, it wasn’t a dream?”

 

The vault was completely empty.

 

Thud-.

 

Hwanggeum Man collapsed right there.

He just stared blankly at the empty vault.

Then he shook his head frantically, came to his senses, and struggled to enter the vault.

It seemed they had cleaned out the vault and even cleaned it afterward.

It was spotless without a speck of dust.

 

Drip-.

 

Tears came to his eyes.

How much he had suffered to gather all those things.

They say it was all like a spring dream.

What had he struggled so desperately for?

 

Creak—.

 

While he sat there in a daze, he heard the sound of a door opening.

Slowly turning his head, he saw the evil spirit mask standing there.

 

“You, you!”

“Have you come to your senses?”

 

Hwanggeum Man asked with bloodshot eyes.

 

“Where, where did all my treasure go?”

“I distributed it all to the people who shed tears of blood because of you. Ah! Don’t worry. I gave it away in your name.”

“What?”

“I told them you realized you had lived your life wrongly and were returning it out of repentance, and everyone was grateful to you.”

“They were grateful to me? The people?”

“That’s right.”

“Don’t lie to me. In all my life, no one has ever thanked me.”

“It’s true though? If you don’t believe me, go outside and see. There are people everywhere who will greet you with thanks when they see you.”

 

Something was strange.

For someone who had been so obsessed with treasure to show such a reaction.

Those words were meant to provoke him, but it was an unexpected response.

 

“They really thanked me?”

 

What’s this?

That reaction?

Jeok Wigang hurriedly followed Hwanggeum Man, who ignored him and headed outside.

Just in case he might harm those who greeted him with thanks, demanding his money back.

As soon as they went out, a person who met Hwanggeum Man bowed and greeted him.

 

“Great Person! Thank you! Thanks to you, laughter has returned to our household. Since you said you’d become a new person, I’ll do my best to help you too. If there’s anything I can help with, just call on me anytime.”

 

Other people also approached and greeted him.

 

“Great Person! Thank you!”

 

Hwanggeum Man’s bewildered expression gradually brightened.

He wore a happy expression as he listened to people’s greetings.

 

“Are you alright?”

“Did, did you hear? They called me Great Person! And they’re grateful! They’re thankful!”

“So what?”

“No! They called me Great Person! Great Person! Those are the words I’ve wanted to hear so much! They’re grateful! These are also words I’ve wanted to hear all my life! Do you see? The sincerity of those people?”

“Of course it’s sincere.”

“Hahaha!”

 

Excited, Hwanggeum Man moved to a place where there were many people.

Then even more people flocked to him and expressed their gratitude.

 

“Hahaha! Hey! What’s the big deal about something like that!”

“No! No! It was all my fault. I’m sorry for troubling you all this time!”

“Oh my! You don’t need to do such things!”

 

Hwanggeum Man responded to each person’s greeting and happily received the things people gave him.

Watching his behavior, Jeok Wigang looked on in disbelief and then chuckled.

The person had changed so dramatically that it was hard to adjust, but it seemed this was the kind of life Hwanggeum Man truly wanted.

He must have wanted to live like this, but something went wrong in the past.

Jeok Wigang quietly watched Hwanggeum Man, who was happy even without money.

 

 

 

Having received everyone’s gratitude, Hwanggeum Man returned home and was looking at the empty vault.

 

“Why? Do you regret it now that you see it again?”

“No. To my eyes, that vault now looks fuller than it has ever been.”

“What?”

“I was poor from childhood.”

 

That would be the case. Usually, people who were this obsessed with money had such backgrounds.

 

“Back then, there was someone I respected, and thanks to that person, our family could make a living. People called him Great Person and always praised him. I felt the same way. He always lived receiving people’s gratitude. So I thought too. When I grow up, I’ll become such a Great Person.”

“But then?”

“To become like that Great Person, I worked desperately and saved money. So I helped those in need. But do you know what’s funny?”

“What?”

“Not a single person ever said thank you to me. I didn’t even hope to be called Great Person. I was of low birth to begin with. But those who received my help, far from expressing gratitude, actually felt their pride hurt. They thought they had received help from someone lower than themselves, that beggar.”

“I see.”

“Then one day? My mother became seriously ill, so I went to fetch a physician. It was a physician who had received my help when he was in trouble, so I naturally thought he would help and rushed over. But he said his practice was closed for the day and told me to come back tomorrow. Even though someone was dying…”

 

Hwanggeum Man sighed.

 

“Mother passed away that day. And I made a resolution. I would never help anyone again. If I had money, no one would ignore me, so I became even more obsessed with money.”

 

Hwanggeum Man looked at Jeok Wigang and said.

 

“But… even as I earned a lot of money and treasure filled the vault, this inexplicable emptiness wouldn’t disappear. I lived thinking it was because I didn’t have enough money. So I tried even more desperately to accumulate money. But… today I realized. Why I felt empty. I had been hoping for it. A day like today.”

“Was this the life you dreamed of?”

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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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