The Legend of Red Cloud - Chapter 70

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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 70. A Method Beyond Reach
“The Plum Blossom Sword!”
“It’s Hwasan!”
Yi Song and Jwa Ryang’s exclamations erupted simultaneously.
The Black Ghosts who were driven into harsh operations like the Jeok Sa Jo and died en masse were mostly drawn from capable minor sect martial artists or vagrants.
There was no regret in their ephemeral deaths.
But Major Sects like Hwasan were different.
Such places nurtured each disciple with meticulous devotion.
As a result, there had been no precedent of a Major Sect disciple ever stepping forward as a Black Ghost.
Of course, that alone was not the source of their shock.
The gap in martial skill was stark.
There were not a few disciples of Major Sects who displayed such ability without even having their names listed among the Kangho Fifteen Spirits or Yeongha Baekwi.
Dae Heuk, called the Hwasan disciple, was no exception.
The fragrance of plum blossoms trembled and poured forth, filling the heavens and earth with blooms.
Those enchanted by their beauty would walk straight into the Yellow Springs.
Each petal was a blade of qi that called for blood.
From the sheer number of plum blossoms blooming in full flower, one could instantly discern that this man called Dae Heuk had reached the Ipshin Gyeong.
A first-class Master of a Sect.
As everyone marveled at such a person stepping forward as a mere Black Ghost, Jeok Sa moved with an expressionless face.
Ignoring the plum blossoms that filled heaven and earth and poured down, Jeok Sa’s Flowing Blade cut in a straight line.
As if to say: if you wish to cut with flowers, then cut.
If Jeok Sa charged straight in, the plum blossom blade qi created by the Illusory Sword’s mysteries would pierce through his entire body—but Dae Heuk’s neck would also fly to Jeok Sa’s Flowing Blade.
After a brief moment of clash, Dae Heuk’s form ghosted backward.
Whoosh.
In an instant, Dae Heuk’s front robe was sliced open as he retreated eight zhang.
Had Dae Heuk’s choice been even a heartbeat slower, or had Jeok Sa not already measured the distance beforehand by extending the Flowing Blade to its maximum reach, Dae Heuk would not have gotten away with merely a torn robe.
Slightly startled by that outcome, Dae Heuk suddenly found Jeok Sa erupting into his space.
Reflexes and leaping power that defied belief as human movement.
Eight zhang of distance had vanished into nothing in a single instant.
As Jeok Sa’s Flowing Blade descended upon him, cold blade qi surged forth.
Horror flooded Dae Heuk’s eyes as he finally understood what realm his opponent inhabited.
In that moment, Dae Heuk—indeed, all of them—were certain of his death.
Thwack.
Mo Yong Ji Eun burst forward from nowhere and stood before the frozen Dae Heuk, arms spread wide to block.
Shiver-shiver-shiver.
The blade of the Flowing Blade, trembling so violently that everyone could see how desperately Jeok Sa had halted his strike, now pressed against the space between Mo Yong Ji Eun’s brows.
Trickle.
Blood ran down Mo Yong Ji Eun’s forehead, opened by the killing intent clinging to the blade.
Had she been even slightly, the very slightest bit slower, Mo Yong Ji Eun’s head would have split in two.
Jeok Sa’s blade withdrew slowly, his gaze fierce.
“If you wanted to die, there are plenty of places to do it besides here.”
He spat the words at Mo Yong Ji Eun, then turned his gaze to Dae Heuk.
“If you wish to die, I’ll oblige. Will you keep blocking?”
At Jeok Sa’s threat, Dae Heuk turned back and shook his head.
The Black Ghosts who had confirmed their opponent was a master of Hwagyeong were losing their will to fight.
There was no profit in forcing such subordinates into battle.
Observing Dae Heuk’s decision, Jeok Sa’s voice emerged.
“Move out.”
At Jeok Sa’s command, the Jeok Sa Jo members began to move, taking with them those who could be called prisoners—the technicians—and one martial artist of the Hyeol Gwi Dae.
The Black Ghosts had no choice but to watch with heavy gazes as the Jeok Sa Jo passed before them, and then Mo Yong Ji Eun stepped forward.
It was a sign that she intended to follow.
Jeok Sa’s voice caught her stride.
“I won’t stop you from following. But they won’t leave this place alive.”
As Mo Yong Ji Eun’s eyes widened at his words directed at Dae Heuk and the other Black Ghosts, Jeok Sa’s voice continued.
“I don’t want rumors that a Named Horse of the Hyeol Gwi Dae has returned to the Maeng Ui Dan. I have no intention of seeing the Alliance bleed because of it.”
In other words, he would leave no witnesses to Mo Yong Ji Eun following the Jeok Sa Jo.
“They won’t spread rumors.”
“I don’t trust anyone who isn’t mine.”
At Jeok Sa’s cold reply, Mo Yong Ji Eun found herself unable to follow the moving Jeok Sa Jo.
And so, turning his form to follow the Jeok Sa Jo that was already far ahead, Jeok Sa departed.
As Jeok Sa and the Jeok Sa Jo grew distant, Mo Yong Ji Eun and the Black Ghost operatives could only watch them depart in silence.
Upon returning to the garrison, the Jeok Sa Jo handed over their prisoners to Chamnyeonggak and made their way back to their quarters.
Silence hung thick in the air.
No one spoke.
Each was haunted by the thought that a single careless word might become a burden too heavy for Jeok Sa to bear.
The crisis did not erupt from the Jeok Sa Jo—it came from the prisoners themselves.
The craftsmen, having heard countless stories of the brutal torture that awaited those captured by the Maeng Ui Dan, panicked the moment they were locked in a dark cell and began spilling everything they knew in an uncontrolled flood.
The interrogators, many of them torture specialists themselves, never even entered the chamber.
The prisoners were already so terrified by the mere fact of their confinement in that dark room that no further pressure was needed.
And so the sheer volume of information pouring from the craftsmen’s mouths was staggering—and grave.
So grave, in fact, that even the Alliance Patrol Unit recording their confessions grew frightened.
In the end, without reporting to their superior agency, Chamnyeonggak, the Alliance Patrol Unit forwarded the matter directly to the headquarters—the Alliance Rules Committee.
Chamnyeonggak could hardly object to this procedural breach.
Though the Patrol Unit technically fell under Chamnyeonggak’s authority, they functioned as a kind of special detachment in the Maeng Ui Dan’s structure.
More precisely, the Alliance Patrol Unit was in fact a dispatch unit answerable to the Alliance Rules Committee itself.
What they classified as a grave matter was the Jeok Sa Jo’s “treasonous conduct.”
From the prisoners’ testimony came details of the encounter between the Jeok Sa Jo and the Black Ghost operatives.
The encounter itself was not the issue.
Given the nature of Saja Plain as a battlefield, such meetings were inevitable.
The problem was that the Jeok Sa Jo had allowed Black Ghost operatives they could have killed to simply walk away.
Moreover, they had blocked the path of a Named Horse who had come to defect of her own accord—Mo Yong Ji Eun herself.
When combined with accounts from a previous Named Horse defection incident, this matter grew increasingly grave.
When Tae Geuk Geom Wang received notice that the headquarters had dispatched an investigation team, his face hardened.
As the name itself suggested, the Alliance Rules Committee oversaw the discipline of the Cheol Hyeol Maeng.
One might expect such work to be driven by righteousness, but that was far from the truth.
Why else would the Committee be nicknamed “the wolves of politics”?
They had a reputation for seizing on even the smallest blemish and tearing at it relentlessly.
Moreover, even the Lord and Deputy Lord had no authority over them.
The Council of Elders alone held power to command the Alliance Rules Committee.
The Council, composed of nine elders representing the nine Major Sects and six elders representing eighteen mid-tier schools, moved with ruthless singularity of purpose—the advancement of their own factions’ interests.
Because of this, the Council’s decisions often conflicted with those of the Cheol Hyeol Maeng itself, or veered in entirely different directions.
The Alliance Rules Committee was the Council’s most formidable instrument of power.
Of course, if there were nothing to seize upon, the Committee would be useless.
But if even a minor pretext arose, and the Council learned of it, then the machinery of the Council’s will would turn, likely crushing everything in its path.
Knowing this, Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s face twisted in anguish.
“How did you bungle things so badly that this reached headquarters?”
He bellowed at Gong Chan, the head of Chamnyeonggak, whom he had summoned immediately. Gong Chan answered carefully.
“I handed over the prisoners to the Patrol Unit without thought, treating them as mere captives. I apologize, sir.”
While direct responsibility lay with the Chamnyeonggak administrator who had received the prisoners, as its chief, Gong Chan bore the blame.
“Does an apology solve this now? Bring me the administrator responsible this instant!”
“Sir, beating a subordinate with the Disciplinary Rod won’t set matters right, will it?”
“Well… so what do you suggest?”
“First, we extract the Jeok Sa Jo from their situation.”
“Under what pretext?”
“Issue them an operational order. Operational orders are the exclusive authority of the Maeng Ui Dan. Since they are not criminals under an Alliance Rules Order, merely subjects of suspicion under investigation, assigning the Jeok Sa Jo a mission does not violate Alliance Rules.”
“You send them out on an operation, and then what?”
Tae Geuk Geom Wang leaned forward with interest. Gong Chan continued.
“We spread rumors.”
“Rumors? What kind of rumors?”
“About Jeok Sa’s true abilities.”
Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s expression darkened at these words. He understood perfectly where such a course would lead.
“Do you understand why I am taking this position?”
“I do. You wished to suppress matters concerning Jeok Sa.”
“And now you’re suggesting I expose them?”
“That is the only way to create an opening.”
“I grasp your reasoning, but you are wrong. It won’t work. Because…”
What followed was the same explanation that had passed between the Lord and Deputy Lord not long before.
Having heard it all, Gong Chan spoke in an even tone.
“Then we must ensure they cannot be destroyed in that fashion.”
“What force could stand against the base desires of the Major Sects?”
“Make it so that no one can touch him.”
“That’s impossible!”
Gong Chan answered the Tae Geuk Geom Wang, whose irritation was plain in his voice.
“It is possible, which is why I mention it.”
Perhaps because the answer came with such confidence, the Tae Geuk Geom Wang pressed further.
“Explain yourself clearly.”
“There are two places within the Cheol Hyeol Maeng where we could make it so that not only the other Major Sects, but all of Zhongyuan itself could never lay a hand on Jeok Sa.”
“Go on.”
Urged by the Tae Geuk Geom Wang, Gong Chan continued.
“First is the Namgung Family. If Jeok Sa were to become one of them, they would possess two masters of the Hwagyeong realm in this generation.”
If that were the case, no one would dare move openly.
To do so anyway would be no different from asking to be killed.
Finding merit in the logic, the Tae Geuk Geom Wang nodded, and Gong Chan’s voice continued.
“And another thing — within the Namgung Family that harbors Jeok Sa, there would be no one who envies him or looks down upon him. They already have a master of the Hwagyeong realm established in their midst, one who has reached the realm of perfection.”
“You speak of the Alliance Lord.”
“Indeed. Though his temperament is rough, he possesses the capacity to shelter Jeok Sa.”
“True. That bastard’s nature is impossible, but he’s capable of that much.”
With such a temperamental disposition, when he glared, there would not be a soul in the Namgung Family bold enough to scorn Jeok Sa’s origins or discriminate against him.
“Good. But you said two places, didn’t you? Where is the other?”
“Muddang.”
At Gong Chan’s answer, naming his own sect, the Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s eyes widened.
To that reaction, Gong Chan spoke.
“Muddang already possesses a master of the Hwagyeong realm, just as before.”
At this personal revelation, the Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s eyes narrowed.
True, it was nothing compared to the Alliance Lord, and he was not equally respected by all of his sect’s disciples, but he too had now reached the Hwagyeong realm.
And if Jeok Sa were to join them……
Then anyone foolish enough to mock him carelessly would find their mouth torn open.
The Tae Geuk Geom Wang nodded at this, and Gong Chan continued.
“Muddang has never been known to discriminate based on a disciple’s origins, so that concern would be unnecessary.”
“Right. We don’t raise the kind of rotten character who would do such a thing in the first place.”
The words spoke well of Muddang, and as the Tae Geuk Geom Wang smiled faintly, Gong Chan spoke again.
“If one of these two places takes Jeok Sa in, then even if his abilities become known, no one will dare harm him easily. And he will have no reason to ever leave the Alliance.”
Gong Chan had deliberately left unspoken the most crucial part, slipping it in only at the very end, and at his words, the Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s eyes narrowed.
This was precisely where his deepest concern lay.
His worry about the slander and calumny that would pour forth from the Major Sects who did not have Jeok Sa was not merely about the pain Jeok Sa—or rather, Ryu—would suffer in that process.
The Tae Geuk Geom Wang, as well as the Alliance Lord, had feared that Ryu might grow disillusioned with the Cheol Hyeol Maeng during that ordeal and throw himself into the Gunja Rim.
The Tae Geuk Geom Wang began to ponder the method that Gong Chan had proposed.

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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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