The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Merchant Group - Chapter 158

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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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The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Trading Company Chapter 158

Chapter 158. The Purpose of the Blood Calamity (2)

At that very moment, the Blood Sect Members who had been living in disguise as ordinary villagers in Yeon Cheon Village moved toward the Wudang Sect.
Today was the promised day, after all.
“At last, the history of the Blood Sect begins anew today.”
At the words of the one leading them, they struck their chests with their right fists and cried out.
“Blood Sect dominion over the Realm! The truth of chaos!”
The Blood Sect were those who deliberately created chaos, for only when chaos came would the world they desired arrive.
Their martial arts were intertwined with blood, and thus they were called by the name Blood Sect.
It was a term of contempt, but the Blood Sect Members took pride in it.
It was a name that perfectly embodied their identity.
“All we ever wanted was the world that would come after chaos—nothing more. But the world rejected us and persecuted us. Yet now, the days of hiding and suffering persecution are over. For he who once guided us shall guide us again.”
Years of endurance and patience flashed before their eyes like a lantern show of the past.
But now, the time of patience had ended.
From far away, the sound of a drum echoed. The promised hour had arrived.
They rushed toward the Wudang Sect to greet their Sect Leader, now recovered.

* * *

I jolted awake in the Guest Hall’s quarters, my body springing upright.
That revolting blood scent… The Blood Sect Members were on the move.
I immediately opened the door and stepped out, where Seo-woo Warrior, who had been standing guard, questioned me.
“What is the matter, sir?”
“We must go in there at once.”
At my words, the four Guard Warriors and Palgap followed me immediately, and we soon arrived at the pavilion where the Blood Sect Member was confined, bound with iron chains and golden ropes.
A fierce battle was already raging there.
“Do not retreat!”
“For the glory of the Blood Sect!”
Clang!
Crash!
Clang!
The sound of cold weapons clashing was deafening.
“What should we do?”
At the Yeo Eung-am Warrior’s question, I hesitated slightly.
A fierce melee was already underway, and there was a considerable risk of losing my life to a stray blade.
Because of this, I hesitated to order the Guard Warriors to join the battle.
That was when Seo-woo Warrior spoke.
“We are your master’s guards. We believe that protecting your master’s safety is our highest priority in this situation.”
Everyone nodded at those words, and I did not step forward immediately.
“Let us observe the situation for now.”
“Understood.”
The reason I said to observe the situation for a moment was that the elders who had not participated in the friendly martial arts tournament were now joining the fight, and the advantage was beginning to shift toward the Wudang Sect.
And I needed to find the Murim Alliance’s collaborator.
“…!”
That was when it happened.
“Ugh! How much longer are you going to make me wait!”
Someone who appeared to be an elder of the Wudang Sect cried out and cut down one of his own allies.
What?
The Murim Alliance’s collaborator was a Wudang Sect elder?
Damn it, that’s why I didn’t notice.
Everyone was startled by this unprecedented turn of events and stared at the elder, and Jin Jeong Elder, whom I had met before, shouted at him.
“Jin-gu Elder! Have you lost your mind?”
“I have no intention of making excuses for my actions. There is no point explaining anyway—you would not understand.”
“Then why commit an action that cannot be understood!”
In response to that question, the one called Jin-gu Elder drew his sword and swung it toward the pavilion.
Boom!
At the same moment, the sword energy that flew forth destroyed the pavilion.
“What, what are you doing! There are people in there…!”
Instead of answering, Jin-gu Elder spoke to the Blood Sect Members with an irritated expression.
“Go fetch your sect leader at once!”
“We appreciate your cooperation!”
The Blood Sect members seized the opportunity without hesitation.
Some descended into the underground chamber beneath the pavilion, while the others held back the Wudang Sect’s Daoists.
Soon they emerged topside, dragging a man whose appearance was utterly ghastly.
“Sect Leader! Please regain consciousness!”
“You must accept the essence of the spirit elixir!”
I couldn’t help but be astonished at those words.
The imprisoned Blood Sect member was the Blood Sect Leader himself.
“Ugh, uuugh….”
But something about his condition seemed peculiar.
“What troubles you, Sect Leader….”
“My….”
“Yes?”
“My belly, it hurts so terribly! Uuugh!”
Looking at him, I began to piece things together.
When I traveled to Yeon Cheon Village, Geumryeong had secretly taken the Divine Spirit Blessing Fruit.
Since it was something precious to them, I expected chaos to erupt soon, so I quickly placed it in the Secret Warehouse.
Yet until I departed from Yeon Cheon Village, I observed no sign of disturbance among them whatsoever.
Then there could be only one answer.
They hadn’t noticed the Divine Spirit Blessing Fruit was gone.
But why wouldn’t they have noticed?
Geumryeong must have replaced it with something undetectable.
Then what could she have substituted?
During my recent herb gathering for Palgap, I had discovered something.
A golden fruit so similar to the Divine Spirit Blessing Fruit that it was nearly indistinguishable.
It appeared to be a delicious fruit or spirit elixir, but it was actually the fruit of a poisonous plant.
Its name was the Golden Scorch Poison Fruit.
Consuming it inflicts such severe abdominal pain that one loses consciousness.
I’d heard the agony felt as though one’s insides were being seared by flames.
If this Blood Sect Leader had consumed that….
Well, seeing him writhe about like that, it was certain he’d eaten it.
At his condition, the Blood Sect members cried out convulsively.
“You deceived us!”
“What have you done to our Sect Leader?”
“What have I done? I merely administered the spirit elixir you yourselves provided.”
At those words, their gazes turned toward a man standing among them.
“Then you’re the one who gave us the counterfeit elixir!”
“N-no, I gave you the genuine spirit elixir!”
Something was unfolding in a most unexpected direction.
The Wudang Sect versus the Blood Sect versus the Murim Alliance’s collaborator.
It had become a three-way confrontation.
Palgap let out a hollow laugh watching this unfold.
“What kind of absurd situation is this?”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking.”
I never imagined that Geumryeong’s subtle theft of the Divine Spirit Treasure would create such consequences.
In any case, the person who can end this situation should be arriving soon. I instructed Geumryeong to send word when I came here.
The three forces maintained their tense standoff like tightrope walkers, unable to make a decisive move.
With no clear distinction between allies and enemies, none of them could act.
That was when it happened.
“Sigh… I suppose there’s no choice.”
Jin-gu Elder approached the Blood Sect members and spoke.
“Truth be told, my plan was to let the Sect Leader cause chaos, then take his life at an opportune moment.”
“What did you say?”
It was not the Blood Sect members who reacted, but Jin Jeong Elder.
“You’ve truly lost your mind! Do you not understand what it means for the Blood Sect Leader’s blood to be spilled?”
“Of course I understand. The Blood Sect Leader’s blood is cursed by the Bloodfiend Technique. If that blood is spilled upon this land through his death, the pillars of each sect will be shaken.”
Pillars?
I didn’t know what that meant, but I could now understand why the Wudang Sect had confined rather than killed the Blood Sect Leader.
That was when Jin Yu Warrior spoke.
“I have heard of the Blood Sect’s Bloodfiend Technique before.”
“Yes?”
“The Blood Sect’s goal is to bring chaos to this world. To achieve that purpose, they need a living sacrifice, and that sacrifice is the Blood Sect Leader.”
Jin Yu Warrior continued quietly.
“Only the Blood Sect Leader can master the completion of the Bloodfiend Technique, which means becoming that living sacrifice. If Jin-gu Elder speaks truly, it seems this Blood Sect Leader has perfected the Bloodfiend Technique and is on the verge of its completion.”
Now that I thought about it, in my previous life, after the Blood Calamity caused by the Blood Sect Leader was resolved by the Murim Alliance, the major sects began to decline in a strange manner.
I began to understand the true purpose of this Blood Calamity.
If we gave the elixir to the Blood Sect Leader to restore his body, his rage would naturally turn toward those who imprisoned him.
That would cause tremendous damage to the Wudang Sect, and then to bring about the chaos they desired, they would commit massacres in the surrounding regions.
And if the Murim Alliance stepped in at an opportune moment to subjugate him, the Alliance’s reputation would soar.
Simultaneously, by spilling the Blood Sect Leader’s blood upon this land, they would shake the pillars of each sect and weaken their forces.
But… there was something that troubled me.
The Murim Alliance was a coalition of the Orthodox Martial Arts World, so if their strength weakened, the Alliance itself would also weaken.
That would be undermining their own power, wouldn’t it?
And with that thought came another realization.
Most of the Murim Alliance’s collaborators I had encountered or learned about bore the aura of the Black Path.
Could it be… that the Murim Alliance is the Black Path?
I had entertained this thought before, but even I had to admit it seemed too far-fetched.
I shook my head to dispel the thought. Meanwhile, the situation grew more intense.
“How could you do such a thing knowing that!”
At Jin Jeong Elder’s outcry, Jin-gu Elder let out a cold laugh.
“The pillars that support each sect wavering—in other words, it means a new order can be established.”
“….”
“All this time, our Wudang Sect has been one of the two great mountains of the Orthodox Martial Arts World, yet we’ve only made sacrifices. Why must we? We have the power to rule, so why must we only sacrifice?”
“That is the burden of those who bear the weight of the Orthodox Martial Arts World….”
“No! I cannot accept that! I will make it clear to those who demand only sacrifice from us. The true master of this Martial Arts World is our Wudang Sect!”
I began to understand Jin-gu Elder’s true intentions.
He planned to raise his and the Wudang Sect’s reputation by cutting down the Blood Sect Leader when he rampaged.
In my previous life, he must have been an ally of the Murim Alliance as well.
But instead of slaying the Blood Sect Leader, he was killed by him.
In the end, he was merely a tool used by the Murim Alliance.
Jin-gu Elder spoke to the other Wudang Sect disciples.
“If you agree with my words, fight alongside me.”
At those words, the disciples’ eyes began to waver. His words were truly persuasive.
Taaht—!
Jin-gu Elder’s blade moved.
And those who agreed with his words began to follow suit.
Jin Jeong Elder rebuked them sharply.
“Come to your senses! The Wudang Sect does not exist to rule!”
But his words no longer reached them, and ultimately he threw himself into battle to stop Jin-gu Elder.
Clang—!
Crash-bang—!
Clang-clang—!
The melee erupted once more.
If things went as I expected, it was about time for his arrival….
“Hah(喝)!”
Then, someone’s shout rang out and the fighting suddenly ceased.
Thud, thud, thud,
Walking forward with confidence was Jin-seon Sect Master of the Wudang Sect.
Geumryeong had delivered my letter properly.
At the unexpected arrival of the Sect Master, Jin-gu Elder visibly panicked.
“Ah, no, Sect Master, how did you come to be here?”
“Strange words. Is there somewhere I cannot go?”
“….”
“I had a bad feeling about this, yet such a thing has occurred!”
He approached Jin-gu Elder and struck his face with his fist.
Crack—!
Everyone was taken aback by the scene.
No one had expected the Sect Master to strike an Elder with his bare fist.
I too was surprised.
The Sect Master was more straightforward than I expected.
“You fool! A so-called Daoist who hasn’t even grasped what the Way truly is?”
“Ugh… What exactly is this Way that demands such sacrifice from our Wudang Sect?”
“The Way is like nature itself. It does not assert itself, yet we know it is always present. That is the Way! A Way that dominates is no Way at all!”
The Sect Master shouted at him.
“Your sins are unforgivable! Therefore, I command you by my authority as Sect Master to spend the remainder of your life in Chamhoe Cave!”
“Unacceptable! I cannot accept this!”
He gnashed his teeth and drew his sword, rushing toward the Sect Master.
“I will kill you and become the Sect Master myself!”
At those words, I let out a sigh.
I was once again reminded of how tenacious human obstinacy truly is.
It seemed it was time for me to step in.
“Pardon me… I have a question.”
“Who are you?”
At Jin-gu Elder’s blunt inquiry, I posed a counter-question instead of answering.
“For the Blood Sect Leader’s blood to be spilled through death, he must first be alive—isn’t that a prerequisite? Or am I mistaken?”
“….”
“If he was confined, then dying by means other than blood-spilling would be acceptable, wouldn’t it?”
“….”
“Then once he’s already dead, whether his blood is spilled or not, it wouldn’t affect the ‘pillar’ at all, would it?”
“What are you trying to say?”
“Since medicinal herbs are the primary commodity of the Trading Company I serve, I have some knowledge of what he consumed.”
“…?”
“I heard the term ‘elixir’ mentioned earlier, but given how he’s complaining of abdominal pain, it appears he ingested a toxic herb that could easily be mistaken for an elixir.”
“…?”
“And, if I’m not mistaken, he’s already dead.”
With those words, everyone’s gaze turned toward the Blood Sect Leader, who had already become a cold corpse.

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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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