The Fortunate Sword God of the Zhuge Clan - Chapter 49

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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 49.
When Mu Hun found Yang Mujin, the man wore a wry smile, the expression of someone who’d seen it all and accepted it.
Mu Hun could guess the reason at once: children trailed behind Yang Mujin like chicks following a hen, their hands full of snacks and toys.
“It seems everyone’s already enjoying the Yongbong Festival.”
“Hah… Candies sold at twice the street price that taste exactly the same, spinning tops that shatter after two spins—if such things make the children happy, that’s enough for me.”
“You’re a true leader. Truly an exemplary person to emulate.”
The Yongbong Festival was ordinarily one of the Orthodox Sects’ greatest celebrations.
And this time, the Gupha Ilbang was participating for the first time in history—drawing the keen interest not just of connoisseurs, but of common folk as well.
Because of this, despite the central Martial Arts Tournament spanning three days and nights, Wudang Mountain was packed shoulder to shoulder with spectators.
There were even figures who appeared to have come from as far as the Western Regions.
With so many people gathered, how could there be a shortage of merchants?
Traders not only from Hubei but from all across the realm had converged on Wudang Mountain, creating a sprawling street market.
Despite the prices being double the usual rate, every stall was thriving, buoyed by the eagerness of early arrivals hoping to secure the best spots.
The children under Yang Mujin’s care were thoroughly intoxicated by this atmosphere, touring the festival in all directions even before reaching the Wudang Sect.
“The Family Head has prepared lodging for you and the children. I’ll show you the way—please follow me.”
“Oh, really? Thanks, Deputy Leader. I’m not sure we deserve all this.”
“Heh. But you’re the leader of the Cheoneung-dan. This much is only proper to arrange for you.”
As Mu Hun prepared to lead the group onward, one of the children whined in protest.
“Whine! I want to look around more!”
Yang Mujin started to console the child, but someone was quicker.
“Seok-i! Who are we getting all this from? If you don’t listen, you’ll get scolded.”
“Whine… I understand….”
The oldest girl among the children Yang Mujin cared for. Hong-a.
Though her lip jutted out after Hong-a’s words, the child dropped the fussing.
While Yang Mujin had been away working at Geumsa Tower to earn coin, Hong-a had taken on the role of head of the household.
Mu Hun smiled at Hong-a’s capable conduct.
“Thank you, Hong-a. How’s school going? Have you made a few friends?”
“Oh….”
At Mu Hun’s question, Hong-a’s face flushed—a stark contrast to moments before—and her voice grew small and halting.
“I… I’m doing well thanks to your support… I… I have made some friends….”
“That’s good to hear. The Jegal Clan’s name has been helpful, I’m told.”
“H-How did you…?”
Hong-a’s eyes widened in surprise, and she shot a glare at Yang Mujin.
The source of the story was painfully obvious.
Yang Mujin innocently began to whistle, and Mu Hun let out a chuckle.
“I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to bring shame on the Jegal Clan. It’s just that I was proud to have received patronage from such distinguished people….”
“No, not at all. If the clan’s name proves useful, use it freely. You’re not the sort to commit evil under the Jegal name, are you?”
“Of c-course not! I will bring no shame to the Jegal Clan’s honor!”
“Good. Then that settles it.”
One of the children, who had been quietly watching the exchange, spoke up.
“But Hong-a, why is your face so red talking to the Deputy Leader? And your voice got so small!”
The child beside her flashed a knowing smirk—one that resembled Yang Mujin’s—and answered.
“That’s because the Deputy Leader’s super handsome! Girls just can’t talk right to good-looking guys!”
“Stop! Stop that!”
“Aaah! Hong-a’s true self has emerged!”
Yang Mujin, observing this, grinned widely and glanced at Mu Hun.
“Accurate words. My heart aches, Deputy Leader. Our eldest daughter Hong-a’s taken a liking to such a busy man.”
“That’s not true! Don’t say such things!”
“Ha….”
Mu Hun laughed awkwardly.
He already knew his appearance was exceptional.
Since his Severed Meridian Syndrome had healed, he drew the attention of women wherever he went.
It was the same everywhere across the realm—even here on Wudang Mountain, he felt the subtle gazes of the women present upon him.
His feelings about this were complicated.
Truthfully, it felt good. There was no reason it shouldn’t.
A refined appearance was useful not merely for casual affection, but in any circumstance.
Yet for fifty-eight years, gaunt and wasted, he had rarely received compliments on his looks from anyone but family.
Now, receiving such praise from people so much younger held no deeper meaning—it was simply pleasant.
So Mu Hun shrugged awkwardly and replied.
“For now, let’s head to the lodging, settle in, and have a meal.”
“Good. Since I’m to receive their hospitality, I might as well make the most of the lodgings the Jegal Clan has arranged. Though….”
Yang Mujin’s expression grew serious as he sent a transmission of thought.
-Something extra seems to have tagged along. You’re aware of it?
Mu Hun gave a slight smile and nodded.
-I deliberately didn’t chase them away. I’ll introduce them shortly.
-Introduce, you say….
Yang Mujin studied Mu Hun for a moment, then let out a soft chuckle.
“Well then, let’s be on our way.”
***
Mu Hun and Yang Mujin’s party arrived at the lodgings, unpacked their belongings, and finished their meal.
Confronted with a feast more lavish than anything they’d seen in their lives, not only the children but even Yang Mujin couldn’t hide his astonishment, and they made short work of the spread.
Afterward, the children wandered through the estate marveling at its vast scale, under the watchful eye of the Jegal Clan’s servants.
Since the building had been constructed as a villa for the Jegal Clan itself, there were no other guests besides them and Yang Mujin’s party, which only made the place feel all the more enormous.
Mu Hun and Yang Mujin entrusted the children to the servants and stepped outside.
“So, what should we do now? Perhaps we ought to greet the Jegal Family Head first?”
“Indeed, and then we can prepare to receive the other great families as they arrive. Is there anything special you wish to prepare?”
“I’ve kept a Crimson Robe from the Main House for an occasion like this. It’s been ages since I’ve pulled out the stops to make an impression.”
“Ah. The legendary house’s flattery, then. I shall look forward to it.”
Mu Hun turned his head slightly, gazing down one side of the street.
“But first, let me introduce you to someone I mentioned earlier.”
A thread of qi emanating from his gaze pierced through the crowd and past the wall, reaching a figure beyond.
It was the same person Yang Mujin had sensed pursuing Mu Hun moments ago.
The figure felt the probe and attempted to flee hastily.
“And where exactly do you think you’re going?”
Yang Mujin materialized in the figure’s path, blocking the way.
“Wh—what?”
Trapped, the man spun around to escape the other direction, only to find Mu Hun already standing there.
The man’s pupils dilated sharply at the realization he had no way out.
Mu Hun offered him a good-natured smile, though it clearly didn’t come across that way—the man shrank back further.
“A beggar, then.”
Yang Mujin’s expression twisted slightly at the indescribable stench of someone who clearly hadn’t bathed in an age.
The patched and repatched clothes bore witness to countless repairs; the hair, stiff with accumulated grime, stood at wild angles as if frozen in place.
Even a three-year-old would have called him a beggar without hesitation.
“First-class realm in cultivation, yet his Movement Technique is exceptionally refined. From the Gaebang, I’d wager?”
The Gaebang—one of the Nine Sects One Gang, and the Orthodox Sects’ premier intelligence network, a community of beggars.
The identity of the man who’d been pursuing Mu Hun was revealed: a member of that very organization. Jin Yu.
“Indeed. In Hubei, my skills are well regarded among our circles.”
“Ah, so this fellow is to handle our intelligence gathering, then?”
“That is my hope.”
Jin Yu stared up at the two men, his expression utterly befuddled by their enigmatic conversation.
He was curious about what they were saying, but there was something else troubling him far more.
‘How did they know I was pursuing them?’
While it was obvious at a glance that both men surpassed him in skill, Jin Yu took tremendous pride in his tracking technique.
He’d successfully shadowed Peak Realm masters on multiple assignments, after all.
But there were two things Jin Yu hadn’t anticipated.
The first was that Yang Mujin was a Super Peak Realm master, far beyond the ordinary Peak Realm.
The second was that Mu Hun, having participated in the Yongbong Festival before, had been certain Jin Yu would pursue him, and had therefore maintained far sharper awareness than usual.
Jin Yu had even represented the Gaebang’s Late-stage Masters at that festival in his previous life.
“Jin Yu… may I call you Young Master Jin?”
When Mu Hun spoke his name despite never having met him face to face, Jin Yu started violently.
“Wh—how do you know my name… urk!”
Jin Yu was so shocked he forgot even the Gaebang’s most basic rule: never reveal one’s true identity.
He clamped his hand over his mouth, but spilled water cannot be gathered back up.
“Heh. Don’t be so alarmed. I learned much about you from Patriarch Hwang.”
“Patriarch Hwang? That can’t be! The Gaebang never sell one another’s secrets!”
“Not sold, precisely… Rather, I came to know of you through the same circumstances that brought you to seek me out.”
“The same circumstances…?”
As Jin Yu pondered the meaning, his eyes widened as understanding dawned.
“You mean—so you really were the one who stole my Gongcheong Seokyou from Qingcheng Mountain!”
“Hm?”
Mu Hun’s eyes widened at the word “stole.”
“If you received information about the Gongcheong Seokyou from that old man Hwang, then you’d know the source was me! Do you have any idea how hard I worked to obtain it? I spent a full five years scouring Qingcheng Mountain just for that one small piece of information!”
“…So you believe I stole it from you.”
“Of course you did! I would have found it too! If I’d just had a little more time! I’d already managed to locate that strange misty space! So that Gongcheong Seokyou should have been mine!! But you—”
Jin Yu lunged at Mu Hun, trembling with fury.
“You ate my Gongcheong Seokyou first!!”
That was the truth.
When Jin Yu discovered that the mist-shrouded region of Qingcheng Mountain where the Gongcheong Seokyou should have existed had vanished, panic seized him.
After days of being unable to collect himself, Yongdu Bangju, the master of the Gaebang, called Jin Yu aside.
—You know the Yongbong Festival is happening, right? Go clear your head there.
—But sir… with so many people in one place, how is that supposed to clear my mind? If you’re sending me to Hubei, I’d rather go somewhere scenic like Dongting Lake….
—You don’t want to? Then get lost. You can see Dongting Lake on the way. And while you’re at it, participate in that Martial Arts Tournament too.
—…Then you should have just said so from the start instead of calling me out like that.
Yongdu Bangju’s reply was unreasonable.
—Then you would’ve just sulked and not come anyway. Either way, speak up. Are you going or not?
So he’d come anyway, unable to shake the hollow despair of losing the Gongcheong Seokyou—and that was when Mu Hun entered his field of vision.
This young master of the Jegal Clan who’d earned a reputation as sickly, now stood before him healthy, stronger even than Jin Yu himself.
The moment he saw this, a conversation with Hwang, the Hubei branch master, flickered across Jin Yu’s mind.
—Hey, you… you said there was some nonsense about a Gongcheong Seokyou in Qingcheng Mountain, right?
—It’s not nonsense; there definitely is one. But why?
—Oh, there’s this sickly young master in the Jegal Clan, you know? I thought maybe such a story might comfort him.
In that instant, Jin Yu was certain.
Old man Hwang had told that story to this young master of the Jegal Clan.
So that bastard believed those words and came to Qingcheng Mountain and stole my Gongcheong Seokyou!
Jeok Mu Hun, that damned kid!
“…That is indeed the case.”
Jin Yu rubbed the back of his head, his voice now notably softer.
It was thanks to Mu Hun instinctively using the Mystery of Flexible Sword to knock Jin Yu on his back in response to the sudden attack.
Though Jin Yu was a promising late-stage master of the Gaebang, the gap between First-class Realm and Peak Realm was not something one could simply overcome.
Even accounting for that, the subtleties of the Manseong Cheondo Sword were a domain Jin Yu struggled to comprehend, so he would have lost even if they’d fought at the same level.
Jin Yu, as a martial artist, knew this well enough to have no choice but to accept his situation.
Yet knowing one’s opponent was stronger didn’t make the grievance in one’s heart any easier to bear.
Jin Yu’s sullen expression remained unresolved.
Yang Mujin, observing this, turned to Mu Hun with a question.
“This fellow looks bristling with complaint. Deputy Leader, it seems unlikely he’ll join us unless you somehow make him cough up that Gongcheong Seokyou.”
“Heh, I wish I could do that for him, but… it’s impossible, you see.”
Mu Hun lowered himself to one knee, bringing his eyes level with Jin Yu’s.
“Young Hero Jin, I apologize for consuming the Gongcheong Seokyou first.”
“I… I beg your pardon?”
Unprepared for an apology, Jin Yu’s eyes widened.
“Had someone like Young Hero Jin not found that information for me, I would still be suffering from Severed Meridian Syndrome. If anything, not only did I steal it, but I’ve incurred a debt of life to you as well.”
“…That’s not… I mean….”
Mu Hun’s apology carried genuine sincerity.
Of course, in this life, it was he and Dokgo Hyun whose efforts had secured the Gongcheong Seokyou, but in his past life, it had been Jin Yu who’d obtained it through over a decade of arduous work.
Because of this, even if it couldn’t be helped, Mu Hun harbored a genuine sense of apology toward Jin Yu.
Jin Yu, knowing nothing of this, was instead thrown off by Mu Hun’s demeanor.
With him approaching so humbly, it was actually harder for Jin Yu to dismiss his words with a casual “well, I suppose.”
Mu Hun seized this opening.
“Though it may seem meaningless to you, allow me to explain how I obtained the Gongcheong Seokyou.”
Mu Hun gave a detailed account of the process by which he’d obtained the Gongcheong Seokyou.
He omitted his encounter with Jungdal’s will, but he recounted without a shred of falsehood the methods of passing through the Trial Formations, how he’d merged multiple formations into one narrative because there were so many, and how he’d overcome them all.
As he listened, Jin Yu’s sullen expression gradually shifted, taking on a note of admiration.
‘No way….’
There’s no way I could have done that?
The thought flooded Jin Yu’s mind in an instant.
Trial Formations were fundamentally difficult to comprehend without basic knowledge.
For Jin Yu, who’d never studied them, understanding Mu Hun’s explanation of how to break through these formations was difficult no matter how simply it was explained.
‘The Jegal Clan’s intellect plus a Peak Realm martial artist made it possible.’
He possessed neither right now.
In fact, it had been ten years from now before Jin Yu obtained the Gongcheong Seokyou in his previous life.
“…and so that is how matters came to be.”
Therefore, once Mu Hun finished his account, what Jin Yu felt was no longer jealousy or anything of that sort.
It was instead a kind of resignation, tempered with something akin to reverence.
‘As if… fate itself had chosen this man to be the master of the Gongcheong Seokyou.’
For Jin Yu, Mu Hun’s tale could be understood in no other way.
With this, Jin Yu exhaled a shallow sigh, rose from his seat, and offered Mu Hun a clasped fist salute.
“I have allowed greed to cloud my judgment and shown disrespect to the Young Master of the Jegal Clan. I hope you will forgive me.”
In the face of Jin Yu’s sincere apology, Mu Hun smiled gently.
“Not at all. Jin the minor escort surely found your own answer in the end. What you said about me stealing it—that was not without truth.”
“That is not so. It seems I harbored ambitions beyond what my vessel could hold. As a member of the Gaebang, I transgressed against what I ought not have.”
The Gaebang, as an information network and as beggars, eschews desire for that which one cannot truly bear.
Jin Yu understood this better than anyone and had lived by it all his life.
Thus, the moment he judged that obtaining the Gongcheong Seokyou would be beyond him, he could cast aside his longing for it.
Yang Mujin watched the two of them exchange these words with a peculiar expression.
‘The way this man speaks…’
Whether it was martial prowess, intellect, or eloquence—he felt fortunate that Mu Hun was on his side.
Whether Mu Hun knew what he was thinking or not, he returned the clasped fist salute.
“I am merely grateful for your words. As expected, you are indeed a man of great character, Jin the minor escort.”
“Ah… heh. Hmm. You honor me too much.”
“Hm. And with such humility to boot. Truly admirable.”
Jin Yu concealed his feelings beneath gratitude at Mu Hun’s praise.
But it was no mere courtesy.
Jin Yu had indeed uncovered traces of the Gongcheong Seokyou with no prior information whatsoever.
Such intelligence could not be obtained merely by having a broad outlook and keen hearing.
What mattered was a relentless, almost terrifying tenacity toward information.
In that regard, Jin Yu was exceptional even within the Gaebang.
‘Perhaps even had he not consumed the Gongcheong Seokyou in the past life…’
The next leader of the Gaebang would have been Jin Yu. That is what Mu Hun had believed, even then.
Though Jin Yu had not directly benefited from consuming the Gongcheong Seokyou, he brought to Mu Hun thereafter the locations of countless spiritual medicines and treasures.
All without a hint of good fortune guiding him as it had Mu Hun.
Even in the war, that intelligence had been worth ten thousand soldiers to him.
Of course, Jin Yu himself had long grown accustomed to wagering his very life in the pursuit of such information.
—Commander, if I could return to the past, I would not become the leader of the Gaebang. I would rather simply remain a beggar. This is not work fit for a human being.
—Do not speak so. If not you, then who would take up that burden?
—Someone will. This time it is merely me. I only pray that should there be another chance, it falls to another.
Mu Hun, recalling the complaint Jin Yu had voiced during the war, smiled with bitter sadness.
‘Forgive me, Leader Jin.’
He had said someone would take the role, but to Mu Hun’s mind, there was truly no one else.
Apologetic for being unable to grant Jin Yu’s wish, Mu Hun extended a new proposal to him.
“There is one matter, however, that I would like to propose to you.”
Jin Yu, utterly unprepared for what was to come, turned his full attention to Mu Hun’s words.

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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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