The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Merchant Group - Chapter 177

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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 177

Chapter 177. Traces of Snowwind Palace (4)

“Young Master! I’m coming in.”
At the sound of a voice from outside, I hastily closed the Secret Vault and stuffed the inkstone back into my pocket.
Click.
The door opened and Palgap entered.
“….”
Palgap stared at me intently before speaking.
“Young Master, did you perhaps eat something without telling me?”
“What are you talking about?”
“It seems as though you’re hiding something.”
Well, I certainly am hiding plenty.
The fact that I’m living a second life, for instance.
Or that it was all arranged by Seolpung Palace Ancestor Master.
But I couldn’t possibly tell Palgap any of this.
He would surely summon the Physician with a worried expression.
His perceptiveness is truly remarkable, though.
I pride myself on managing my expressions well, yet he noticed something was amiss.
Could this be one of Sal Wang’s talents as well?
I let out a soft chuckle and replied.
“There’s nothing like that.”

We descended to the first floor.
“Would you like to place an order?”
“Do you have any dishes you would recommend?”
“Since you’ve come to the Northern Sea, you must try our frozen tofu dish prepared in the Northern Sea style.”
“Then, I’ll have that, and….”
After ordering various dishes and sitting in the inn for a moment, a steady stream of guests continued to enter.
The presence of young girls among the guests made it clear they had come for admission to the Northern Sea Ice Palace.
After waiting briefly, the food arrived.
The Female Disciple who brought the food asked with a smile.
“I thought you had left, but you’ve returned?”
“Yes, I’m just passing through on an errand.”
I deflected vaguely and changed the subject.
“By the way, until when does the Northern Sea Ice Palace remain open?”
“Only a few days left now. Once autumn arrives, it becomes difficult to reach this place because of the Seolpung winds.”
“Then this inn also closes by that time?”
She shook her head with a smile.
“Not at all. This place continues to operate. For those who brave the Seolpung winds to come here, this is their only refuge.”
“That makes sense.”
I nodded.
“Then, do the guides lead departures every morning at dawn? I remember traveling at dawn before as well?”
“That’s right. Since there are various preparations to complete upon arrival, we must depart early to stay on schedule.”
At that moment, another guest called for her and the conversation ended.
“Please, enjoy your meal.”
“Yes.”
While eating, Yeo Eung-am Warrior asked.
“By the way, was that rock we saw earlier the one you were looking for?”
“Ah, yes.”
“There was nothing but the rock sitting there, was there?”
The others also wore puzzled expressions.
As I pondered what to say, Seo-woo Warrior spoke up.
“If I may venture a guess, I suspect something was conveyed to you through a great technique.”
I looked at Seo-woo Warrior with some surprise.
It was a guess that came remarkably close to the truth.
“Why did you think so?”
“Because otherwise, your reaction at that moment would be inexplicable.”
Jin Yu Warrior nodded in agreement with Seo-woo Warrior’s assessment.
I smiled, and upon seeing my expression, Palgap spoke.
“It seems Seo-woo Warrior’s words were correct?”
“Yes. That’s right.”
I continued.
“But I can’t speak of it carelessly, so please understand.”
Jin Yu Warrior agreed.
“Such matters are not meant to be discussed lightly.”
“Come now, eat. This is quite delicious.”
The house specialty—a dish made from frozen tofu—proved remarkably palatable.
The texture especially was superb.
After finishing our meal, we each retired to our guest rooms.

That night, I retired early to bed.
Truthfully, I was utterly exhausted.
My body and spirit had been drained from spending long hours cultivating martial arts within the cavern.
When I returned home, I would need to prepare a nourishing tonic.
With such thoughts, I drifted into sleep.
.
.
.
“…!”
A sudden, overwhelming killing intent jolted me awake.
What was this?
I had never felt such intense murderous aura before, and I was bewildered.
But there was no time for shock—I seized my sword and roused Palgap.
“Palgap! Wake up! Palgap!”
“Yes? Why, what is it, my lord?”
Palgap asked in alarm as I drew my blade.
Though Palgap possessed the talent of Sal Wang, his cultivation was still too shallow to sense this killing intent.
The door burst open!
Seo-woo Warrior rushed in.
“My lord! Ah, you’re already awake.”
“Yes! You’ve come because of this killing intent.”
“Indeed. We must investigate at once.”
We gathered our weapons and descended to the first floor.
“Guest, what is the matter?”
A disciple on the first floor looked alarmed as she saw us.
“We’re under attack! There’s a group attempting to assault this inn right now.”
“What? How could….”
The disciple opened the window to look outside, then gasped and quickly shut it.
“How, how could….”
“Please summon the others at once.”
“Ah! Yes!”
She immediately rang the bell.
Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang!
The moment the loud bell tolled, Northern Sea Ice Palace disciples who had been working or resting at the inn rushed in from all directions.
“What’s happening?”
The disciple who had rung the bell answered.
“Spirit Creatures are attacking.”
“What? Why would Spirit Creatures attack this inn?”
I asked her.
“That’s not the important part. Do Spirit Creatures even attack like this?”
“Yes. They usually roam in packs and assault travelers, but this is the first time they’ve attacked the inn directly.”
If that’s the case, then these Spirit Creatures must have a reason for coming here.
That was when it happened.
“They’re coming!”
At someone’s cry, a massive Spirit Creature resembling a bear came charging and pounded against the door.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
At this rate, the door would soon shatter.
Moreover, more Spirit Creatures would likely pour in through the windows.
“Master, what should we do?”
At Jin Yu Warrior’s question, I replied.
“Do your best from your positions. Our highest priority is survival. If you all stay alive, I’ll heal whatever wounds you sustain, so please—survive.”
“Yes!”
Crash!
The door burst open and Spirit Creatures poured through the gap.
A terrible roar echoed.
“Block the ones coming straight at you!”
“Yes!”
One of the Northern Sea Ice Palace disciples shouted, and the disciples calmly moved to intercept the Spirit Creatures rushing toward them.
The window in front of me shattered just as quickly, and Spirit Creatures flooded in from that direction as well.
I leveled my sword toward the Spirit Creatures.
A chance to use the sword techniques I’d learned through one-on-one instruction with the Ancestor Master in real combat.
A true merchant should be able to sell rice cakes to a tiger—otherwise, they’re not a true merchant at all.
Hmm?
But something felt wrong.
The Spirit Creatures looked at us, then deliberately avoided my direction and rushed toward the others instead.
As if they feared me.
Come to think of it, when I’d encountered the Red Eye Snow Fox before, it had fled urgently upon seeing me.
But now, instead of fleeing, they were avoiding me and rushing toward the others—that was the difference.
I moved toward the creatures that were rushing past me toward the surrounding area.
Since they were all nimble Spirit Creatures, I employed the fourth form of the Jinseol Twelve-Form Sword Technique—Snowwind.
‘Snowwind’ was swift, yet more than mere swiftness.
It was a fierce wind that even hunters who had lived long in the Northern Sea and the disciples of the Northern Sea Ice Palace itself feared.
I relearned the Seolpung technique from the Seolpung Palace Ancestor Master, and in doing so, I grasped its true power.
As I swiftly swept my blade horizontally, that razor-sharp wind tore through the Spirit Creature’s neck.
I then brought my sword down again to finish it completely.
Immediately after, I swept my blade horizontally at the Spirit Creature beside it, dispatching it in the same manner.
That was when it happened.
“The Spirit Creatures are entering the Gate of Mist!”
“Damn it! What’s inside that place?”
Chaos erupted among the Northern Sea Ice Palace Disciples.
The Gate of Mist referred to the misty barrier I had seen before—the one that barred men from entering.
They rushed desperately to pursue the Spirit Creatures, but a considerable number had already slipped inside.
“What do we do! Those who were supposed to enter the palace left only half an hour ago!”
“Damn it! Those disciples in good condition, head inside immediately! The rest of you, recover yourselves!”
Half an hour ago meant they would catch up before those who departed earlier reached the Ice Palace.
This situation was clearly being exploited.
There were only two disciples guiding them, as far as I knew. Perhaps there were no particular dangers inside.
The condition of the Northern Sea Ice Palace Disciples remaining here was not good either. Even if a few in decent condition pursued them, it would be insufficient or too late.
If things continued this way, it was only a matter of time before the young girls who had entered to become Northern Sea Ice Palace Disciples were torn to shreds by the Spirit Creatures.
I bit my lip.
What should I do?
Seolpung Palace regarded protecting the Northern Sea Ice Palace as a kind of mission.
I recalled the contents of the letter left for me in the cavern I had entered through the traces of Seolpung Palace.
The Ancestor Master had said that martial arts were established for both Seolpung Palace and the Northern Sea Ice Palace.
If that was the case, then as a disciple who had learned Seolpung Palace’s martial arts, my duty was clear.
I ordered the Guard Warriors to hold this position and quietly slipped out of the inn.
Without any obstruction, I entered the mist and pushed off the ground with force.
I ran through the mist for about a quarter of an hour.
The mist was so thick that I couldn’t see even an inch ahead, yet strangely, I seemed to know where I needed to go.
Soon I arrived at an area without mist and saw footprints pressed into the snow.
This way, then.
Using the Shadowless Step technique at full power as I ran, I could soon feel an intense killing intent.
“Screeeech!”
And the screams of women reached my ears.
Without hesitation, I rushed toward the sound and saw a Spirit Creature relentlessly driving a blood-soaked Northern Sea Ice Palace Disciple into a corner.
“Haaah!”
I maintained my technique at full power and charged in, cleaving the Spirit Creature from head to groin in one vertical stroke.
The girl whose life I had saved expressed her gratitude with a bewildered expression.
“Th-thank you for saving me.”
“I will handle this place, so please protect the Palace Entrance Candidates.”
“Ah, yes.”
I immediately drew my sword and charged toward the red-eyed Spirit Creatures.
A considerable number of Red-Eyed Snow Rabbits.
Individually, they were not particularly formidable, but their sheer numbers made up for it.
Against creatures like these, a wide-ranging snow avalanche technique was ideal.
My blade swept through the air, and the sword energy extended outward in a fan-shaped arc.
Like an avalanche itself.
The terrifying thing about an avalanche is that once you’re caught in it, there’s no escape.
While I swung my sword in a frenzy, a sudden thought occurred to me.
Could it be that the Ancestor Master summoned me to the Northern Sea and personally taught me martial arts for this very moment?
Was I overthinking this?
“…!”
I hastily turned my gaze away from the Spirit Creatures and looked toward the young girls hoping to enter the Northern Sea Ice Palace.
In that instant, I felt a surge of killing intent emanating from that direction.
Whoosh—!
Without hesitation, I kicked off the ground and launched myself forward.
As I concentrated my energy, I detected a faint killing intent from one of the girls.
At the same time, I sensed the repugnant aura of the Black Path.
My blade rushed toward her.
“Ahhhhh!”
“Ugh!”
“Eek!”
When I suddenly charged forward with my sword drawn, the girls shrieked in terror and collapsed to the ground.
The Northern Sea Ice Palace Disciples tried to stop me in their confusion, but their blades never reached me.
I was simply that fast.
And just before my blade touched one girl—
Clang—!
She parried my strike with her own sword. It was a formidable defense against a powerful attack.
“So it was you. The mastermind behind all of this.”
She spoke to me.
“How did you figure it out?”
“I just knew, somehow.”
“Nonsense!”
Her eyes turned violet, and she shook the bell hanging from her wrist.
At the sound of that bell, the Spirit Creatures’ attacks became even more ferocious. Now it was certain.
She was controlling the Red-Eyed Spirit Creatures.
But as long as I was here, the creatures posed no real threat.
They instinctively feared me and avoided my presence.
Realizing she had no chance of victory this way, she began attacking me directly.
Crash—!
“Ugh!”
I met her assault head-on.
“So you’re finally showing your true strength.”
“It seems I’ll need to kill you first.”
“That won’t be easy.”
This second life the Seolpung Palace Ancestor Master had granted me in exchange for his remaining years was not something I could surrender so easily.
I wouldn’t simply accept defeat.
“Die!”
“By whose will?”
Though I parried with apparent ease, my opponent’s martial prowess was formidable indeed.
Had I not trained under the Seolpung Palace Ancestor Master recently, I might well have perished.
This must be what the Ancestor Master foresaw.
In any case, prolonging this battle served no purpose. Regardless of the circumstances, I had more people depending on me.
Swift resolution was necessary.
I raised my sword.
White Night.
A pale darkness descended—the night that froze the sun itself.
.
.
.
Shing—!
My blade touched her throat.
“I… I yield.”
She dropped her weapon and surrendered, yet the revulsion emanating from her warned me not to lower my guard.
The Black Path rarely honored surrender without resorting to treachery.
“Spare me. There’s a reason for all this. So please…”
I laughed softly, cutting her off.
“I’m not interested in reasons. Just tell me your objective, and be done with it.”

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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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