The Patriarch of the Northern Heavens - Chapter 38

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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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Master of the Bukcheon Sword Family – Chapter 38

‘Pungsin’s legacy?’
I gazed at it with a tense expression.
‘Could it be referring to the Pungsin Martial Arts?’
Perhaps this document contained information about those who had clashed with Great-Uncle.
I slowly read through its contents.
First.
-Therefore, based on the evidence above, it is estimated that the genuine Pungsin Sword is located within the Martial Alliance. Thus, we request a thorough investigation from our embedded agent within the Martial Alliance….
‘What is this?’
The letter’s contents were not about Feng Shen Valley or the Pungsin Martial Arts dormant there.
The Pungsin Sword.
The very blade that Nam Cheon, the Phantom Thief King’s former disciple, had attempted to steal from our family.
That was what was written in this document.
‘Could it be that what we possess is a fake?’
According to this document, the Pungsin Sword in the Bukcheon Sword Family was not genuine.
It was merely a well-crafted blade.
The true Pungsin Sword apparently harbored a special power within it.
And it was hidden somewhere within the Martial Alliance.
‘This cannot be….’
If Father or Great-Uncle heard this, they would be utterly shocked.
To think that the family heirloom we had been protecting was a forgery.
I tucked the letter into my robes.
I would need to bring it back to the family and conduct a thorough investigation.
“Sa Gong-cheon, let us depart.”
I had now gathered everything worth taking from the Sect Leader’s Administrative Office.
We moved deeper into the compound and discovered what appeared to be an Underground Prison.
There, we found countless vials containing various poisons being researched.
I carefully collected them to avoid any risk of poisoning.
I placed them in boxes with multiple layers of containment to prevent leakage.
‘Though they could still deteriorate depending on temperature….’
If I delivered them to the Medical Hall quickly, they would handle the storage properly.
As I emerged outside with that thought, the area had become quite bustling.
The Iron Blood Sword Squad warrior I had sent to escort the villagers back to their homes had returned with Government Military soldiers.
They trembled and gasped in horror at the sight of the enormous spider, as large as a ferocious beast, lying dead.
I approached the official who had led them and performed a respectful salute.
“I am Jin Muyeol, the Young Master of the Bukcheon Sword Family. It is a pleasure to meet you, sir.”
“Ah, I am Geum Mo, the County Administrator of Yangcheon County.”
The official who introduced himself as Geum Mo fumbled awkwardly and returned the salute.
A mere functionary positioned at the bottom rung of Yangcheon County’s administrative hierarchy.
Thus, they could not treat me, a young master of the prestigious Bukcheon Sword Family, with disrespect.
‘Besides, with a spider corpse of that magnitude lying right before their eyes, it would be awkward for them to act stiffly.’
Considering who had created this corpse, the answer became clear.
Anyone holding an official position would possess enough perception to understand the situation naturally, which is why their respectful tone emerged.
“I believe you’ve heard the details on your way here. These villains claimed to represent the righteous path while attempting to kidnap people for human trafficking and conducting unethical experiments. They must face punishment according to the law.”
“Indeed! I shall have them taken into custody at once.”
“Yes. However, I also have questions for these men. Could you grant me some time to interrogate them?”
“Of course. Please, interrogate them at your leisure while we organize the scene.”
I nodded and questioned the captured men about various matters.
Yet despite employing both threats and incentives, none of them seemed to possess any useful information.
‘That’s only natural, I suppose.’
What could mere underlings at the lowest level possibly know? They were nothing but puppets dancing to the Shadowless Poison Spider’s tune.
‘Spending more time here would be pointless.’
I handed them over to the Government Military as they were.
Our numbers were too few to escort them back to the family compound.
Geum Mo seemed delighted to have achieved merit so unexpectedly. He hurried his subordinates to swiftly take the surviving Wuzhu Sect members into custody.
Meanwhile, we tallied the spoils we had obtained.
“Young Master, quite a substantial sum of money has come to light. It appears these were their operational funds.”
“Then I shall give half of this to Moyong Hyun-rak. He deserves it for monitoring these men at my request.”
“Oh, is that truly so?”
Moyong Hyun-rak accepted it readily, as if his finances had been strained.
Jin Seo-hong laughed upon witnessing this.
“The Blue-Eyed Sword Demon seems quite different from the rumors. I had heard you were like an ascetic, pursuing only the path of the sword while disregarding worldly values such as wealth and fame.”
“Hmph. Where in this world are there people who dislike money? Even those Buddhist monks at Shaolin discriminate based on how much patronage one provides them.”
“Haha. That is certainly true. Yet despite that, you initially helped our Young Master without any compensation whatsoever. We are truly grateful.”
“I didn’t act without purpose. I helped because I owe him a debt of gratitude.”
“A debt? What do you mean?”
Moyong Hyun-rak spoke to the astonished Jin Seo-hong.
“It’s a long story. To summarize, you could say he helped me complete my martial arts.”
“Our Young Master did?”
Jin Seo-hong’s surprise deepened.
Moyong Hyun-rak was a true genius and a master of the Johwa Realm.
The notion that I had guided such a person’s martial arts seemed unbelievable to him.
Yet I merely shrugged at his questioning gaze.
“We should begin our return. There is no further reason to remain here.”
We had defeated all our enemies and collected everything of value.
Remaining here to observe the situation for a while longer might have been acceptable, but….
‘It would be a waste of time.’
It would be far better to use that time reporting what had transpired here to the family.
Having reached that conclusion, we set our course back toward Taiyuan.
It was where the Bukcheon Sword Family was located.

* * *

The family household erupted into chaos, as one might expect.
This incident had been concluded as my initiative—the Young Master’s—to dismantle a human trafficking organization.
Of course, the truth was far different.
But we had no choice; the existence of Black Night Fortress could not be made public.
The reception, naturally, was favorable.
“The Young Master has achieved yet another great deed!”
“Those human traffickers must have had audacity beyond measure. How dare they attempt such crimes before the Bukcheon Sword Family?”
“And that’s precisely why they’ve all been eliminated. It feels satisfying, doesn’t it?”
“But how did the Young Master know about it beforehand?”
“I looked into it myself, and it seems the Young Master had long since noticed their suspicious activities and asked the Blue-Eyed Sword Demon, Moyong Hyun-rak, to keep watch over them.”
“What? The Blue-Eyed Sword Demon? You mean that genius swordsman from the Moyong Clan? The Young Master has connections with such a person?”
“Indeed. Our Young Master appears to have quite an extensive network.”
“Haha. What a blessing for the family.”
The family members were genuinely delighted that I had accomplished such a great feat.
And word of this spread far and wide among neighboring sects, merchant guilds, and escort services.
Thanks to that, many people sent gifts our way.
“My, are all of these gifts that arrived today?”
“Yes. There are many people eager to establish a connection with the Young Master by any means.”
“Ah, there was a time when I genuinely worried about the future of our family.”
“In my view, as long as the Young Master is here, there’s no need for such concerns. The Bukcheon Sword Family will soon reclaim its former glory.”
Everyone was trying to establish their connections before I, the Young Master, could consolidate complete control.
I had no complaints.
The family’s wealth was increasing even as I sat idle.
And there was another advantage to rising in reputation like this.
It made it far more difficult for Black Night Fortress to touch us.
What they feared most was their existence being revealed to the martial world before the Fortress Master emerged from seclusion.
But if they tried to eliminate us now that our reputation had grown so high, they would have no choice but to expose themselves.
Which meant we had to focus on elevating the family’s name by any means necessary, simply to survive in the immediate term.
In any case.
While such matters were unfolding, I called together trustworthy individuals and held a secret meeting.
The attendees were myself, my father, my Great-Uncle, the Iron Blood Sword Captain who had participated in the recent raid, Moyong Hyun-rak, and Sa Gong-cheon, my personal guard.
My reason for gathering them was simple.
To share information about Black Night Fortress and discuss countermeasures.
“I believe you all understand why I’ve called you here.”
I began with those words.
“Surely you’re about to tell us about the mastermind behind this incident? The ones pulling the strings of those we faced.”
Moyong Hyun-rak spoke, his blue eyes gleaming with insight.
I nodded. His intuition was correct.
“Yes. I’ve mentioned some of them before, but those bastards are part of a secret organization called Black Night Fortress. They’re the ones who tried to manipulate the Bukcheon Sword Family from the shadows, and they’re a force operating covertly throughout the martial world.”
“They tried to manipulate the main family from behind the scenes?”
Jin Seo-hong furrowed his brow and asked. I nodded and answered.
“The poisoning of my father and myself, the various incidents that have plagued the main family for years—all of it was orchestrated by them. Surely you suspected as much, Captain?”
“I did have my suspicions. But hearing it confirmed is still shocking. How did you come to know this, Young Master?”
“Back when Elder Won-ju Lee Tae-gyeom was still alive, I was fortunate enough to overhear him conversing with a martial artist dispatched by Black Night Fortress. Since then, I’ve been concealing my true strength while preparing to oppose them.”
“Huh….”
Jin Seo-hong and the others fell silent, unable to find words.
If this were true, it meant I had been grinding my teeth and watching for opportunities since early childhood.
‘It’s not actually true, but there’s no helping it.’
This was the most plausible explanation I could offer without revealing my regression.
Fortunately, they seemed to believe me to some degree, even if not entirely.
I pressed forward with the momentum.
“Now that things have progressed favorably enough to remove Lee Tae-gyeom, a new problem has emerged. They’ve likely become certain that we’ve discovered their existence.”
Even if killing Lee Tae-gyeom could be overlooked, the moment I eliminated the Wuzhu Sect and Shadowless Poison Spider, the situation became irreversible.
Black Night Fortress was already aware of the Bukcheon Sword Family’s involvement.
I was confident enough to wager on this.
“Tell me, Muyeol. What do you think they will do to us?”
Great-Uncle, who had been listening quietly, asked in a measured voice.
All eyes turned toward me.
Considerable pressure.
Yet I remained unperturbed and spoke calmly.
“I believe they will either do nothing and simply observe, or employ others to apply passive restraint without moving directly themselves. There are two reasons for this.”
“Two reasons?”
“First, we are deliberately withholding information about them. If they attack us now, they risk exposing themselves. Black Night Fortress won’t want that.”
“And the second?”
“Because they have more pressing matters to attend to. I believe they will be preoccupied with those concerns and unable to focus on us for some time.”
“What could that be?”
I recalled memories from my first life and spoke.
“The Righteous-Demonic Great War.”
“…What?”
Everyone stared at me with expressions of shock.
As if they’d misheard.
But I stated the truth without hesitation.
“The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult will soon rise to prominence.”
“…!”
At this startling declaration, every person in the room fell silent, their mouths agape.

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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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